Nico Williams has made the decision to leave Bilbao this summer. Although he has a contract renewal offer, he believes this is the ideal time to leave and take a step forward in his career. He is 22 years old, has a contract until 2027, and a release clause that, including the CPI, reaches €62 million. He has attracted the interest of several top European clubs, but he is clear about his priority: wearing Barça's jersey.
Nico Williams "forces" a meeting with Barça
In recent hours, Sport revealed that the forward's agent, Félix Tainta, has traveled to Barcelona to meet personally with Deco. This doesn't mean the deal will go through, but his camp wanted to reactivate the talks.
Jijantes has stated that it was Nico Williams himself who initiated this meeting again with Barça. The meeting is a direct request from the winger to learn firsthand about the intentions of the culers. In this regard, the Navarrese footballer prioritizes playing for the Catalan team and wanted to reactivate negotiations, an "imposition" that had been set from Barcelona.
Willing to lose money for Barça
Nico Williams has several offers, including Arsenal, Bayern, and Chelsea. He is asking all of them for a salary of €10 million net per season. He knows that, to play for Barça, he has to lower his expectations, and this is something he has done.
The renowned English journalist Ben Jacobs has stated that the forward "is open to reducing his salary demands" to play for Barcelona. This is the option he prioritizes, and for that, he is willing to lose money—not just a little.
While he is asking the rest for €10 million net, with Barça the situation is different. In the meeting with Deco, Félix Tainta has already conveyed that, if they decide to move forward with the deal, they would sign the contract agreed upon about a year ago.
We're talking about salary figures well below what he is now asking from the others. He would go from €10 million net to earning €6 million, almost half.
Twelve months after the deal fell through, now FC Barcelona knows it holds all the cards. Nico Williams dreams of wearing the blaugrana jersey at Camp Nou, alongside friends like Lamine Yamal, Balde, or Pedri. For that, he is willing to lose a lot of money.