Barcelona are close to a deal to sell Arsenal-linked winger Malcom to Zenit Saint Petersburg, according to reports in Spain.

RAC1 reporter Gerard Romero, who has a good track record for Barcelona news, claims Malcom is ‘close’ to Zenit, with negotiations ongoing. Barcelona want €40m for the winger, but at this stage, they still haven’t reached an agreement to sell.

Marca are the original source of the story, writing (via Football-Espana) that Barcelona were willing to lower their initial €60m demands for the player, as Ernesto Valverde doesn’t see him having a prominent role in their squad.

Barcelona are currently at the limit for non-EU players in their squad, meaning they have to sell one to buy another. Given the links to Neymar in the window so far, it’s starting to look like Malcom could end up being a casualty of that pursuit.

Arsenal have been linked to Malcom repeatedly for a long time now, but given the club are currently trying to finalise a massive deal for Nicolas Pepe, Zenit look like the favourites.