Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has confirmed he wants to sign a new right-back before the end of the transfer window.

The World Cup winner was speaking after his side’s 1-0 victory against AC Milan in Las Vegas where the Catalan also notably left out Paris Saint-Germain-bound winger Ousmane Dembele.

Joao Cancelo set for Barca switch?

As reported yesterday, Barca are hoping to spend the cash raised by the sale of Dembele to sign Manchester City full-back Joao Cancelo this summer.

And Xavi decided not to dispel the rumor that Cancelo is set to swap England for Spain, saying in his post-match press conference, “We need a pure right-back”.

“We need a pure right back”, Xavi said few hours ago.

…and this is the scenario revealed on Sunday night: Barcelona will use part of Dembélé budget to bid for João Cancelo at least one more time. 🇵🇹

More to follow ⤵️🔵🔴 https://t.co/trS1RXHBa2

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 2, 2023

Against Milan, Xavi decided to play usual central defender Ronald Araujo as a right-back with USMNT regular Sergino Dest out of favor at the Spanish champions.

Cancelo spent the second half of last season out on loan at Bayern Munich and his future at the Etihad Stadium looks in serious jeopardy after the blues’ went on to win a historic treble in his absence.