One of FC Barcelona's Brazilian stars, who has recently been linked to Arsenal, looks set to leave the club and is reportedly closing in on a somewhat surprising move to Russia.
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Barca are actively looking to offload a number of players following the acquisitions of Antoine Griezmann and Frenkie de Jong and it has become apparent that one Brazilian star no longer has a future at the club.
According to Marca, who cite Russian publication Championat, Brazilian winger Malcom is one of the players Barca are looking to sell after he was deemed surplus to requirements by manager Ernesto Valverde.
The former Bordeaux wideman has now been linked with a move to Russia with Zenit Saint Petersburg the likely the destination.
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Zenit's sporting director, Alexander Metvedev, is reportedly in Barcelona to negotiate a deal, although it is unlikely that the club will match Barcelona's €40 million (R631 million) valuation.
"Negotiations for Malcom are advanced with Barcelona and we're going through an active and decisive phase," said Metvedev.
"The 40 million euro (valuation) is a number that is a long way from reality."
Should Zenit meet Barca's asking price they would equal their club record for the most expensive signing, having splashed the same amount on two previous occasions to sign Hulk and Axel Witsel.
Read: Reports: PSG Drop Neymar Asking Price By €120m
Malcom, who was also linked with Arsenal before they switched their attention to Nicolas Pepe, joined Barcelona at the start of last season and scored four goals in 24 appearances for the Catalan giants.
Should Malcom move to Russia or is he better off fighting for his spot at Barcelona? Let us have your thoughts by commenting below.
