Barcelona Targets New No.9: Kroupi Joins Álvarez on Shortlist

Barcelona’s hunt for a new No.9 has taken another turn, with the Spanish champions sounding out a move for Bournemouth forward Eli Junior Kroupi while keeping Julián Álvarez firmly at the top of their wish list, a source told ESPN.

The message from the club is clear: Robert Lewandowski is gone, and Barça intend to rebuild their attack with ambition, not caution.

Álvarez still the priority

Joan Laporta has already gone public. Barcelona have made an offer for Álvarez, who told ESPN in June that he wants to leave Atlético Madrid. The bid landed on Atlético’s desk — and stayed there. No acceptance, no green light.

Laporta has insisted that the proposal will not disappear overnight, but it will not sit there indefinitely either. The pressure is now on Atlético. Change their stance, and the deal can be revived. Hold firm, and Barcelona will move on.

For Hansi Flick, Álvarez is the ideal fit to spearhead a refreshed frontline in his third season in charge. Two LaLiga titles have restored domestic dominance, yet the Champions League failures still sting. The German coach wants an attack that can hurt Europe’s elite, not just control games in Spain.

Kroupi emerges as a serious alternative

That is where Eli Junior Kroupi comes in.

With doubts growing over the feasibility of prising Álvarez away from Atlético, Barcelona have asked about Kroupi’s situation at Bournemouth, according to a source. It is an exploratory move, but a deliberate one.

Kroupi, just 20, has quickly become one of the Premier League’s most intriguing young forwards. Signed from Lorient last summer for €15 million, the France U21 international hit 13 goals in 35 appearances in his debut campaign. That kind of return, at that age, in that league, has not gone unnoticed.

Nor has his price. Bournemouth, reluctant to lose a player they see as a centrepiece of their project, are expected to demand well over €100 million, with multiple top European clubs already circling. Barcelona know they would be walking into a bidding war.

Yet the Catalan club’s interest underlines the scale of their rebuild. This is not a search for a stopgap. They want a long-term reference point in attack, someone who can grow into the role Lewandowski vacated when he left for Chicago Fire.

Flick’s new-look forward line

The changes around the front line have been sweeping.

Anthony Gordon has arrived from Newcastle United, bringing direct running and goals from wide areas. Karim Adeyemi has joined from Borussia Dortmund, adding pace and unpredictability. Marcus Rashford, whose loan from Manchester United offered flashes without becoming a permanent solution, has returned to Old Trafford. Lewandowski has crossed the Atlantic to MLS.

One by one, the old certainties have gone. Flick is reshaping the attack in his own image: aggressive, mobile, flexible.

There is also a question mark hanging over Ferran Torres. The forward, who scored Spain’s winning goal in the World Cup final against Argentina, faces an uncertain future at the club. His situation could further influence how boldly Barcelona move for a marquee No.9.

Barcelona’s summer so far has been about pieces. Gordon on one flank. Adeyemi on another. The tactical puzzle is almost complete.

What’s missing is the striker who will turn those chances into trophies — whether that ends up being Julián Álvarez, Eli Junior Kroupi, or someone else entirely.