Nico Williams has rejected a move to Barcelona, despite being linked with the club in recent weeks and reportedly offering himself to them, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The Italian journalist revealed that although Nico had apparently offered himself to Barcelona in the past few weeks—following last year’s saga—the deal is now off due to the club’s inability to guarantee his registration for La Liga.
According to Sport, Nico Williams’ agent wanted to insert a clause in his contract—similar to Dani Olmo’s—that would allow the player to leave for free if Barcelona failed to register him. However, the club reportedly refused to include such a clause, raising further concerns about their ability to register new signings.
La Liga president Javier Tebas recently revealed that Barcelona were not yet operating under the 1:1 financial rule, which is necessary for registering new players. Though some sources claim the club is close to meeting the requirement after settling deferred salaries owed to players dating back to 2020, doubts remain.
Nico Williams also turned down a move to Bayern Munich, prompting speculation that he may have used Barcelona’s interest—just like last season—to secure an improved deal at Athletic Club. The player has now signed a 10-year contract extension, tying him to the club until 2035.
During the transfer saga, Nico’s mural was reportedly defaced three times by Bilbao fans. The club also made inquiries into Barcelona’s financial situation to assess whether the Catalans could actually register new players—all part of an effort to block the potential transfer, as confirmed by the club’s social media page.
Now, Athletic Club have tied Nico down with a release clause of around €85 million—an amount Barcelona might struggle to meet, especially considering their current registration uncertainties.
In my view, and as also reported, Nico did not want to leave Spain, so it was either Barcelona or Athletic Club—which he ultimately chose for the sake of his family. However, signing a new long-term extension and increasing his release clause could be problematic, especially if he plans to leave in the future. The only club in Spain currently capable of paying that clause is Real Madrid, and they are neither in the market for a winger now nor likely to be in the near future.