Barcelona turn attentions to Valencia's Murillo

After being repeatedly rebuffed by Chelsea for their pursuit of Danish defender Andreas Christensen, Barcelona have now turned their attentions to a different target: Valencia's Jeison Murillo. The La Liga leaders are in desperate need of defensive cover, as they only have two senior fit central defenders, Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet, at their disposal. 

Injuries to Thomas Vermaelen and Samuel Umtiti have left the 'Blaugrana' short of players, and with the fixture list due to ramp up after the winter break, the signing of another versatile defender is much needed. As reported by 'Sport', Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde had earmarked Christensen as his designated first choice target, but he is now intent on bringing in Murillo on a six month loan deal. 

Another Spanish outlet, 'Mundo Deportivo', has also cited Barcelona's eagerness to bring in Murillo, who has found it difficult to get game time at Valencia so far this season. The experienced Colombian international was a prominent figure for 'Los Che' during a loan spell last season, but having joined permanently, he has yet to return to top form.

Should Barcelona fail to recruit Murillo;  there are two youngsters, Jorge Cuenca and Chumi Brandariz, that are knocking on the door of the first team. However, the manager thinks they lack the necessary experience to step up to the first team.

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