Lautaro Martinez would not be guaranteed to start at Barcelona and should stay with Inter for the time being, according to Fabio Capello.
Barca are keen to bring the Argentine striker to Camp Nou as they aim to reform their front line for next season, and intend to offer him a contract worth €10 million (£9m/$11m) a year as they make him their number one priority in the transfer window.
The club already have a wealth of attacking riches, including Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Ousmane Dembele, Antoine Griezmann, and the returning Philippe Coutinho from his loan spell at Bayern Munich - while they are also keen to bring Neymar back having sold him to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 for a world-record fee.
While Barca have indicated they are willing to sell in order to bring in Lautaro, former AC Milan, Real Madrid and England coach Capello feels he would progress better if he stayed under the management of Antonio Conte at San Siro.
In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport , Capello said: "If I were him, I would stay at Inter, because at Barca he would be a substitute."
Currently all transfers have been placed into a perennial state of uncertainty because of the coronavirus, which has caused the postponement of all football across Europe, and the cancellation of some leagues including the top-flight seasons in the Netherlands and Belgium.
It is unclear when the transfer windows will open, and if clubs will be able to afford the huge fees seen in recent seasons, with the lack of matchday revenue and television income causing economic uncertainty across football.
Capello feels that almost every team in Spain will be financially affected - including Barcelona - and that the transfer market will be heavily impacted with much lower fees.
He said: "It seems to me that, economically, in Spain the only team that will not be destroyed in this pandemic is Real Madrid. Barcelona and Atletico Madrid are going to suffer a lot.
"The market will be revolutionised. Absurd numbers have been reached for the transfers. We will return to a more reasonable level. Smart managers will be necessary to fix the system. Egotism can be fatal."
