Eli Junior Kroupi wants to play for Barcelona. That is the word coming out of the latest reports from Diario SPORT, which claims the 19-year-old Bournemouth attacker is ignoring the sirens of the Premier League’s elite in favor of a move to Catalonia.
Photos of a young Kroupi decked out in full Barça gear have been making the rounds, which signals the interest may be more than rumor. But there is a massive problem. According to The Times, Bournemouth has slapped a £100 million price tag on their breakout
star to scare off any potential suitors.
It is a staggering figure for a player who only moved to England for €13 million recently. However, Kroupi has earned the hype.
He just netted his 12th goal of the season in a 3-0 rout of Crystal Palace, a penalty that cemented his place in history. He is now the first teenager to hit double figures in a debut Premier League season, joining the likes of Robbie Fowler and Robbie Keane.
His manager, former Athletic Club Bilbao player Andoni Iraola has turned him into a versatile weapon, and that hasn’t gone unnoticed by Didier Deschamps. Kroupi is currently in the preliminary French squad for the World Cup in North America.
Whether he survives the final cut in June, right when he turns 20, is a different story given France’s depth, but even being considered says a lot.
Barcelona sees him as the heir to Robert Lewandowski. The technical staff has been monitoring him since his days at Lorient, where he stayed loyal after their relegation to finish as the top scorer in Ligue 2. But the financial reality at Barcelona makes a £100 million deal look like a fantasy unless the Catalans raise enough funding through sales. There is also the Momo Sissoko factor to consider. Kroupi is represented by the same agent who handled Ousmane Dembélé’s messy exit from the club. Relationships there are strained, to put it mildly.
