Whilst Kim Min-jae’s (25) move from Fenerbahçe to Rennes is advancing, the deal to sign Barcelona’s Samuel Umtiti (28) is being held up by doubts within the club about his physical state.
In a press conference at the club’s training camp in Dinard, transcribed by L’Équipe, Genesio said, “Umtiti is a player I like a lot. But we are also in a club with a way of working where we aren’t always in agreement regarding our choices. We need consensus. There are questions about his physical state, so I understand that – for the club – that could be something that slows the deal.”
Genesio also revealed that he had spoken to Umtiti about the issue. “I had an exchange with him where I was reassured, but ultimately that will be judged on the pitch. For me, he is also a world champion and has the experience that we are looking for. We’ll have a talk to see if that comes to a successful conclusion, or not.”
He continued, “We are talking about it. When there are people (the recruitment team) that work in this domain, who see a multitude of matches and analyse a multitude of data, it is normal to trust them with recruitment, during the season it isn’t my primary job. So either we have a functioning that we hold on to, otherwise having this well-defined organisational structure means nothing, and personally, I feel good with this way of working, where everyone has their place.”
Umtiti made just a single La Liga appearance last season. Since joining Barcelona in 2016, he has been ruled out by injury or illness on 16 occasions and has missed a staggering total of 606 days as a result.
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