Lamine Yamal names the one player he wants Barcelona to sign
- Yamal keen to link up with Nico Williams at club level
- Duo currently impressing at Euro 2024 with Spain
- Williams recently stressed his happiness with Athletic Club
By Tom Gott
Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal has admitted he wants the club to strike a deal to sign Spain teammate Nico Williams this summer.
Williams is a long-term target for Barcelona but, while his release clause of €50m (£42m) is relatively affordable in the modern market, his weekly wages of around €200,000 have already scared off suitors like Chelsea and Aston Villa and would clearly be too much for a Barca side who find themselves in a difficult financial situation.
In an interview with Cadena SER, Yamal was asked to forget reality and name the one player he would sign if Barca had an unlimited budget, and he responded by urging Athletic Club's Williams to make the move.
"Nico is a great player and I hope to be able to share a dressing room with him," he said. "Of course, I think he should decide.
"We get along really well. Since the first call, he has been like that and he is another friend here. He is one of those wingers who confront you, who beat you with speed. He has audacity, can overwhelm anyone, and that helps any team. If I could, I would sign him."
Williams, however, recently made it clear he is not looking to leave Athletic Club in the near future.
"I am very happy at Athletic, it is the club that has given me everything, the one that has bet on me 100%," he told COPE.
"I am very happy in Bilbao and that is all I have to say. Yes, I am quite clear, in the end, as I have told you, Athletic is my home. I am very happy, and what I want to do is focus on the Euros one hundred percent and for the rest I don't know what's going on."