Barcelona news: Joan Laporta reveals why Lautaro Martinez transfer failed

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has revealed how his club's summer pursuit of Lautaro Martinez ended almost as soon as it began, with Inter Milan shutting down the possibility of a transfer before the Catalans could seriously approach the Argentina international.

Barcelona's interest in Lautaro was already known, with the 29-year-old among the high-profile forwards considered as the club searched for a long-term solution at number nine.

However, Laporta has now provided his own account of the negotiations and clarified exactly where the proposed move broke down.

Speaking to Corriere dello Sport, the Barcelona president admitted that Lautaro was a player he wanted "at any cost" and revealed that he personally contacted Inter president Beppe Marotta over a possible deal.

The response was immediate.

Laporta wanted Lautaro 'at any cost'

"Lautaro is an incredible player, we didn't want to let him get away at any cost," Laporta explained.

"I called president Marotta, who told me that the player was not for sale."

According to Laporta, Inter's position left no room for negotiation. The Serie A club were determined to retain their captain and made clear that they would not consider allowing him to leave.

Laporta added that the decision would not simply have been left to Lautaro himself because Inter had already decided that they wanted to keep him.

Barcelona therefore ended their pursuit rather than attempting to force the issue.

That detail is significant because previous reports had focused heavily on Lautaro's own reluctance to entertain a move to Camp Nou.

Marotta had previously claimed that the striker "refused to negotiate" with Barcelona after learning of their interest, reinforcing the impression that the player himself had rejected the Catalan club.

However, Barcelona sporting director Deco subsequently explained that Barca had not approached Lautaro or his representatives once Inter had declared the forward unavailable.

Laporta's latest comments support that version of events: from Barcelona's perspective, the move was stopped at club level before talks with the player could develop.

Inter refusal came before Lautaro decision mattered

There is no suggestion that Lautaro was pushing to leave San Siro.

The Argentina international remains under contract until 2029, is Inter's captain and has repeatedly been presented by the Italian club as a central figure in their sporting project.

Nevertheless, the sequence described by Laporta places Inter's refusal at the beginning of the failed transfer rather than Lautaro's personal stance.

Barcelona explored the possibility, Laporta contacted Marotta directly and Inter closed the door.

The Catalans' search for a long-term striker was one of the major themes of their summer window, with Julian Alvarez also among the players strongly pursued before Atletico Madrid refused to sell.

Barcelona ultimately added Gabriel Jesus, although Raphinha's remarkable form through the middle has provided another solution during the early stages of the 2026-27 campaign.

The question of a more permanent number nine solution is therefore likely to return, but Lautaro now appears considerably harder to revisit than a conventional failed transfer target.

Barcelona would not only need to convince the player. Laporta's account suggests that they would first have to change the position of an Inter hierarchy that did not even allow the original conversation to progress beyond one phone call.