USWNT star Catarina Macario reported to have offer from Barcelona as Man City & Arsenal monitor Chelsea forward's uncertain future with Blues

It was reported last week by Tom Garry of the Guardian that Macario had turned down an offer of a contract extension at Chelsea, where she has been since leaving Lyon back in 2023.

It felt like this season was set to be a big one for the 26-year-old, with her telling GOAL ahead of the campaign that she was "expecting to be free" of the meticulous management of her minutes that came after a 21-month period on the sidelines. It felt like she was primed to showcase her world-class talent regularly. However, things have not quite gone to plan. Niggling injuries have troubled Macario at times, with her yet to play in 2026 because of a heel issue, and when fit she has yet to score in a Women's Super League season that is proving rather disappointing for a Chelsea side that has won all of the last six titles in this competition.

It's hard not to feel like Macario's stint with the Blues is coming to a natural end, with her perhaps able to rediscover her best form in another system or environment.

Asked about the American's situation on Thursday, amid so much speculation, Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor said: "Cat is not available right now due to injury. As you could see, she's not also involved in the Champions League squad. We'll see. We are assessing Cat every week, making sure she will be able to play for us before the end of the season. Hopefully, that will be the case but, today, I don't have the answer to that question."

Macario is not short of offers for that next destination either, it seems. According to Kathryn Batte of the Telegraph, the versatile forward has an offer from Barcelona on the table, with Manchester City, Arsenal and London City Lionesses among the other European clubs to have shown an interest in the 26-year-old.

It's no wonder why. In her final season at Lyon, before that devastating ACL injury, Macario proved herself as one of the best players in the world with the role she played in the French club's incredible eighth Champions League triumph. She has had to battle back from some huge injury setbacks since then but has still shown glimpses of her talent in Chelsea blue, providing nine goal contributions despite just eight starts in last season's WSL, for example.

However, Spanish publication Sport counters the claims that Barca have tabled an offer for Macario, citing the player's high salary, amid the Catalans' financial restraints, as one reason why a deal wouldn't make much sense, with the need to strengthen in defence rather than attack another.

That's because full-back Ona Batlle appears set for a move to Arsenal when her contract expires this summer, with the future of centre-back Mapi Leon also in doubt as her current deal nears its end. Concerns in defence only grew last week with the news that Laia Aleixandri has ruptured her ACL, an injury that will rule her out for most of 2026.

Instead, Sport points to Everton's Martina Fernandez and Wolfsburg's Camilla Kuver as potential targets for Barca. Martinez is a product of La Masia who has been playing well on Merseyside since turning a loan with the Toffees permanent in the summer. Barca have an affordable buyback option on the defender, who is still just 21 years old. Kuver, meanwhile, is out of contract at Wolfsburg this summer and has been playing at a very high level for the German giants this season, having recovered from some incredible injury woes in recent years.

There is also the possibility that Macario returns to the United States and signs for a club in the NWSL. The forward has never played in the top-flight across the Atlantic, having signed for Lyon straight out of college instead of entering the NWSL Draft, but many clubs in the U.S. will undoubtedly be looking to change that, with Macario an attractive potential option ahead of the 2026 season, which starts next month.

The 26-year-old is not named in Chelsea's squad list for the upcoming Champions League knockout phase, with the Blues likely to face Arsenal in the quarter-finals at the end of March after the Gunners beat OH Leuven 4-0 in the first leg of their play-off tie on Wednesday night. As such, Macario may be tempted to leave before her contract expires, given an exile from European competition would not bode well for the final knockings of this season with Chelsea.

In December, the San Diego Chronicle reported that Macario was in 'preliminary talks' with Bay FC. If those talks were to progress further, a move back to California, where the forward grew up after relocating from Brazil as a young girl and played college soccer for Stanford, could be on the cards.