Barcelona will demand $100m (£79m) for Manchester United transfer target Raphinha, according to Sport.

The Catalan publication claims that the Red Devils and a team in Saudi Arabia are expected to battle it out for the Brazilian international, who may be sold during the January transfer window.

United could potentially “push for a swap” deal involving Raphinha and Jadon Sancho but there are suggestions that Barca would not be open to such an exchange.

Instead, it is more likely that the La Liga champions would sanction the sale if a team can meet their requested asking price.

Why are Barcelona looking to sell Raphinha?

Since the Catalan club beat Chelsea and Arsenal to his signature last year, the winger hasn’t been able to meet expectations with his performances.

Raphinha has racked up 12 goals and 18 assists in 66 appearances for Barca which, on the face of it, is not a bad return, but he hasn’t really justified the substantial investment. With the club needing to raise money due to their weak financial position, they may decide to cut their losses on the 27-year-old and offload him to the highest bidder.

Would the player be interested in joining United?

Sport report that Raphinha is “clear” that he doesn’t want to leave the Camp Nou at the moment but his former agent, Deco, is now Barcelona’s sporting director.

The former Chelsea player does still hold some influence over the Brazilian so he may be able to persuade him to move clubs if needed.

It’s definitely a transfer story to keep an eye on, especially if Barca become more amenable to an exchange involving Sancho. From the outside looking in, it does appear as if neither club wants to retain their respective wingers so a swap could end up making a lot of sense for both parties involved.