Barcelona president Joan Laporta has confirmed that the Catalan club made an attempt to sign Inter Milan captain Lautaro Martinez during the summer transfer window.

It is to be remembered that sporting director Deco had previously spoken about contacts between the two clubs , but Laporta has now provided a clear account of Barcelona’s pursuit of the Argentina international.

The Barça president revealed that he personally contacted Inter chairman Beppe Marotta to discuss the possibility of a transfer, only to be told that Lautaro was not available.

Laporta made it clear that Barcelona were serious about bringing Lautaro to the Camp Nou and considered the Inter captain an exceptional player.

At the time, the Blaugrana were looking for a direct replacement for Robert Lewandowski. With Julian Alvarez transfer facing obstacles, Barcelona turned their attention towards Lautaro Martinez.

“He’s an incredible player; we didn’t want to let him slip away at any cost. So I rang President Marotta and he told me the player wasn’t for sale,” he told Corriere dello Sport (h/t SPORT ).

As it turns out, Inter’s position was firm. The Italian club did not want to sell their captain, meaning Barcelona eventually decided not to push the situation further.

Laporta also suggested that Lautaro was open to the possibility of making the move, but stressed that the player’s preference could not override Inter’s decision to retain him.