Man Utd defender set for move to Barcelona

Batlle, 23, has been one of the stand out players in the Women’s Super League this season and Manchester United had been desperate to keep her at the club. However, Batlle will move to Barcelona this summer with her contract coming to an end in Manchester this summer.

Reports over the weekend has indicated the the full back was expected to move back to the club she began her career with and this morning highly respected Spanish sports journalist Maria Tikas confirmed there has been an agreement between the player and the club for a number weeks.

Tikas wrote that there is now a “total agreement” between the player and the club and that the Spanish international defender will return to her homeland. While there appears to be renewed hope that Lionesses striker Alessia Russo will agree to a new deal, the club will have to accept defeat in their battle to keep Batlle at the club with a move to the Champions League finalists now imminent and pending only formal confirmation.

Just last month, head coach Marc Skinner told ManchesterWorld: “There’s a lot of love from Alessia and Ona towards the club and the club to those players. We are hopeful and we are working hard behind the scenes. I get why you are asking but we are working and as soon as we have updates we will give them.”

Batlle signed for United in the summer of 2020 on a free transfer from Spanish side Levante, where she had spent the previous two seasons. The Spanish star was previously with Barcelona at youth level, having joined the club at the age of just 14 and is understood to be a fan of club having been born in Vilassar de Mar.

There was renewed hope the player would agree a new deal with the club after it was revealed the club are in discussions to sign close friend Maitane López and while that deal is believed to be close, it doesn’t look like it has any impact on the future of the key defender.

The loss of Batlle will be a bitter blow for the club with the defender one of the frontrunners to claim the Women’s Super League player of the year away after an outstanding season saw her become one of the league’s top assisters as they qualified for the UEFA Women’s Champions League for the first time.