Barcelona Rejected PSG's First Offer for Ferran Torres. Now the Fee Is Rising Fast

Ferran Torres has been given permission to miss Barcelona training as his move to Paris Saint-Germain edges towards completion, with the deal now likely to be worth more than £40m according to BBC Sport. The 26-year-old had been due back at the Ciutat Esportiva on Wednesday but will not report, with negotiations between the two clubs reaching an advanced stage.

The timing matters. Barcelona rejected PSG's opening offer of around €40m ($46m) just a day earlier, ESPN reported on 11 August. Within 24 hours, the club had already cleared Torres to stay away from the squad while terms are finalised, a sequence that tells its own story about how quickly the price has moved.

From Rejected Bid to Green Light: How the Numbers Moved

Barcelona's decision to knock back an initial bid worth roughly €40m and then wave Torres off training within a day is not a contradiction. It is a negotiating tactic that has worked. PSG's opening number was treated as a starting point rather than a final offer, and BBC Sport's reporting that the finished deal is likely to exceed £40m confirms the Catalans held their ground and extracted more.

Two outlets, one converging timeline

ESPN's coverage across two days lines up neatly with the BBC's account. Its 11 August story detailed the rejected offer, while a follow-up on 12 August confirmed Barcelona had given Torres permission to stay away from the training ground while the transfer was negotiated. There is no real discrepancy between the two outlets' reporting, just a fast-moving negotiation captured at different stages: reject, then relent on terms, then clear the player to leave camp.

• 11 August: ESPN reports Barcelona reject a PSG bid of around €40m/$46m
• 12 August: BBC Sport and ESPN both report Torres has been given permission to miss training as a deal, now above £40m, nears completion

Why Barcelona Are Willing to Sell a World Cup Winner

On the surface, selling a player who scored the extra-time winner against Argentina as Spain won their second World Cup this summer looks like madness. Look closer at the role Torres actually played at Barcelona and the calculation changes.

A squad piece, not a first-choice starter

Torres has made 207 appearances for Barcelona since arriving from Manchester City in 2022, and 94 of those, 45%, have come from the bench, according to BBC Sport's figures. That is the profile of a valuable rotation forward rather than an untouchable starter, and it explains why Barcelona are prepared to cash in with only one year left on his contract rather than risk losing him for nothing next summer.

Torres himself has done little to dampen exit talk. Speaking on Spain's US media tour after the World Cup win, he offered a version of the classic non-denial:

"I have a contract with Barcelona but, in football, you never know."

Pressed specifically on PSG's interest, he added:

"Every time these teams want you it's a good thing. You never know because in football everything can change in one minute, so I have to be ready for everything." (BBC Sport)

Frustration among fans, opportunity for the boardroom

BBC Sport notes that some Barcelona supporters have grown frustrated at Torres speaking so openly about a potential move while still under contract. For a club that regularly needs to balance the books to register new signings, though, an improved fee north of £40m for a squad player entering his final contract year is a straightforward financial win, whatever the sentimental cost of moving on a World Cup hero.

PSG's Rebuild: Where Torres Fits as Barcola Edges Toward Liverpool

PSG are not buying a reserve. They are buying into a forward line reshuffle that has real urgency behind it. The French champions have won the Champions League in each of the past two seasons under Luis Enrique, the former Barcelona coach and player, and go into Wednesday night's Super Cup final against Aston Villa in Salzburg as the dominant force in European club football (BBC Sport).

The Barcola domino

The urgency stems from the other end of PSG's attack. Bradley Barcola is wanted by Liverpool, and BBC Sport reports the Parisians could lose the young forward this summer. Bringing in Torres, a proven international with 25 goals in 65 caps for Spain, gives Luis Enrique cover if Barcola does move to Anfield, while adding a forward who already knows how to operate in a rotation-heavy system.

For a club chasing what one BBC Sport feature has already framed as a potential three-peat across six trophies this season, depth at every attacking position is not a luxury. It is the plan.

What happens next

Expect confirmation of the transfer within days rather than weeks. Barcelona have already cleared Torres to skip training, PSG have a Super Cup final to focus on first, and both clubs have every incentive to close the deal before the new season gathers pace.

Watch the final fee closely. If it lands meaningfully above the £40m mark BBC Sport has reported, it will confirm Barcelona's initial rejection of the ~€40m/$46m offer was a calculated push for value rather than genuine reluctance to sell.

The bigger subplot is at PSG, where Barcola's situation with Liverpool could determine how the club's forward line looks by the start of the new Champions League campaign. Torres arriving while Barcola potentially departs would represent a like-for-like swap in output, but a clear changing of the guard in profile and price.