West Ham star linked with mind-blowing Barcelona move, as Fabrizio Romano issues response

West Ham United midfielder Pablo Fornals has been tipped to secure an incredible transfer to Barcelona, though Fabrizio Romano has moved to end the shock rumours.

Fornals moved to the Premier League in July 2019 when West Ham spent £24million to sign him from Spanish club Villarreal. Overall, Fornals has made 192 appearances for the Irons, registering 23 goals and 19 assists in that time.

12 of those outings have come this term, though Fornals is struggling to force his way into David Moyes’ starting eleven in the league. That is because the Scot can also use Lucas Paqueta and Mohammed Kudus in the central attacking midfield role Fornals likes to operate in.

Despite not being an integral player for West Ham, the Spaniard has been linked with a huge transfer to Barca. The La Liga giants are weighing up whether to sign a new playmaker following Gavi’s ACL injury while on international duty, and Fornals is one player that has been mentioned as a possible replacement.

Such a move would be a stunning turn of events, given Fornals has only played for West Ham, Villarreal and Malaga at senior level.

Although, it does not look like Barca have strong interest in the 27-year-old, as previous reports have been claiming.

In an interview with CaughtOffside, Romano has stated there are no discussions between Barca and West Ham over a potential January move.

“There have been some surprise links between Pablo Fornals and Barcelona, with the West Ham midfielder supposedly mentioned as an option to cover for the injured Gavi,” the journalist said.

Fabrizio Romano discusses Pablo Fornals future

“Still, I’m not aware of concrete talks for Fornals so far, there’s still nothing decided in terms of [a] new midfielder. As Deco said, the situation is still very quiet. Barcelona’s priority is to use funds on Financial Fair Play to register Vitor Roque.”

It seems Fornals will not be heading to the Nou Camp this winter. Although, he is still likely to depart the London Stadium come the end of the season.

Recent reports from Spain have revealed Sevilla are hoping to snap him up on a free transfer when his contract expires next summer. At the time of writing, West Ham do not appear to be rushing to tie him down to fresh terms.

While Fornals could soon leave West Ham, Moyes is hoping to improve his forward ranks with the arrival of former Chelsea attacker Timo Werner. West Ham are battling Fulham and Crystal Palace for Werner’s capture, as RB Leipzig are gradually warming to his potential departure.

Elsewhere, a West Ham target has publicly given the Irons the green light to sign him by calling them a ‘great team’.