Barcelona 'willing to spend' £87m on Robert Lewandowski replacement and £69.5m on Pau Cubarsi centre-back partner

Barcelona are reportedly planning to move for both Atletico Madrid forward Julian Alvarez and Inter Milan centre-back Alessandro Bastoni next summer.

The Catalan outfit had a relatively quiet summer transfer window, only bringing in Joan Garcia, Marcus Rashford and Roony Bardghji.

However, it is understood that Hansi Flick’s side are planning to be busy in 2026, with at least two major signings expected to be made.

Barcelona are set to be in the market for a new centre-forward next summer, with Robert Lewandowski widely expected to leave at the end of the season.

Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane has recently been linked with a move to Camp Nou, but recent reports have placed Alvarez as Barcelona’s number one target in that area.

Barcelona ‘planning’ 2026 moves for Alvarez, Bastoni

The Catalan outfit are also short in the middle of their defence, having allowed Inigo Martinez to make the move to the Saudi Pro League, and according to El Nacional, Atletico forward Alvarez and Inter centre-back Bastoni are wanted next year.

The report claims that Barcelona are willing to spend €180m (£156.5m) on the duo, with €80m (£69.5m) potentially required to sign Bastoni, while Alvarez could cost €100m (£87m) from Atletico.

Barcelona allegedly view Bastoni as the ideal long-term centre-back partner for Pau Cubarsi, with the team having problems in that area of the field this season.

Ronald Araujo’s performances have been called into question, and head coach Flick changed his centre-backs for the clash with Rayo Vallecano last time out, bringing in Andreas Christensen and Eric Garcia in the middle.

Bastoni has started the 2025-26 campaign in impressive form for Inter, scoring twice and registering one assist in six appearances, while the 26-year-old has turned out for the Italian giants on 260 occasions in all competitions.

Could Alvarez be Lewandowski’s replacement?

Alvarez has scored 30 goals and registered eight assists in 60 appearances for Atletico since making the move from Manchester City in the summer of 2024.

The Argentina international has a contract at Wanda Metropolitano until June 2030, but it is understood that he is giving serious consideration to leaving next summer.

Atletico have had a poor start to the 2025-26 campaign, picking up just two points from three La Liga matches, and the 25-year-old is said to be concerned about how much silverware he could win with the Red and Whites.

Alvarez has proven himself in La Liga, scoring 18 times and registering four assists in 40 appearances in the competition, while he has 15 goals and five assists in 27 Champions League outings, also including his time at Man City.

Lewandowski has been an incredible signing for Barcelona, but he is approaching the end of his time at Camp Nou, and Alvarez could be the perfect replacement.