Barcelona confident of landing world-class No.9 to replace Robert Lewandowski with Harry Kane one of five options under consideration

With just a few months left on Lewandowski's current Barcelona contract, the 37-year-old striker has been closely linked with a move away from the Spanish side next summer as a free agent. The Polish forward's representative, Pini Zahavi recently claimed that the striker could leave the Catalan side, saying: "Lewandowski's contract with Barcelona expires in the summer of 2026, and no decisions have been made yet. We'll have to wait and see what happens in the coming days." 

With the Lewandowski chapter possibly coming to an end, the Catalan giants have started to prepare for life beyond their star striker. According to Mundo Deportivo, the club have prepared a shortlist of five forwards, which includes world-class options like Julian Alvarez and Kane. 

The report adds that Barcelona's financial department remains confident that the club would be able to secure the transfer for a top striker, with the club's eyes on Atletico Madrid star Julian Alvarez. But to afford the new player, they will have to return to La Liga's 1:1 rule. Once Lewandowski leaves, €40 million (£35m/$46m) will be freed up with which the new transfer can be funded.

As of now, Barcelona are close to achieving the 1:1 balance, with pending payment for the VIP seat instalments due in December. In the 2024-25 settlement, €70m out of the €100m (£88m/$116m) has already been paid and the club will receive the remaining €30m by December. With that they will be able to match the 1:1 balance. 

A second clause will be to draw up a financial structure to cover the transfer amount and Barcelona believe that the projected revenue growth after full opening of the Camp Nou will help them to cover that ground. 

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After ruling out the prospect of signing Erling Haaland due to the financial requirements, the favourite candidate to replace Lewandowski as Barcelona's main No.9 is Alvarez from Atletico. The shortlist also consists of Bayern and England star Kane, along with Galatasaray's Victor Osimhen, Borussia Dortmund's Serhou Guirassy and a low-cost option in Etta Eyong. 

The latter, who just joined Levante in the summer, said this week that his dream is to play for the Catalan club and labelled Camp Nou icons Lionel Messi and Samuel Eto'o as his childhood idols.

While Barcelona have not offered Lewandowski a new deal, their star attacker Lamine Yamal reportedly wants the veteran striker to stay. The relationship between the two players at opposing ends of their respective careers has apparently strengthened both on and off the field. Yamal is said to view the ex-Bayern star as 'a mentor', with there being a productive understanding between the pair as they look to pose problems to La Liga and Champions League opponents.

Yamal now wants to see Lewandowski remain in his current surroundings beyond the summer of 2027, when free agency is set to be reached. He is said to be of the opinion that there is nobody better suited to continue fostering his development, while providing much-needed leadership.

The veteran forward has also been linked with a move to Serie A giants AC Milan as Zlatan Ibrahimovic reportedly wants to sign him, while there have also been reports that claimed that the 37-year-old might even consider announcing his retirement from professional football.