Nico Williams: Athletic Bilbao star ‘urged to reject’ Barcelona despite ‘agreeing six-year deal’

Barcelona have reportedly moved a step closer to signing top target Nico Williams this summer, but Athletic Bilbao are hopeful that the deal with fall through.

Earlier this month, the Catalan giants appeared to slip behind Bayern Munich in the race for the 22-year-old, who is believed to have told the Bundesliga champions that he would be willing to make the move to Allianz Arena this summer.

However, Williams' agent Felix Tainta allegedly travelled to Barcelona last Friday to meet with Barcelona’s sporting director Deco to discuss a potential transfer to Camp Nou.

The La Liga champions attempted to sign Williams last summer, but the attacker turned down the chance to join Hansi Flick’s side in order to remain at San Mames.

Now, journalist Fabrizio Romano claims that Barcelona and Williams have agreed personal terms on a six-year contract until June 2031, with a salary worth between €7m and €8m net per season.

Athletic keen to persuade Williams to stay despite Barca agreement

This significant breakthrough has seemingly put Barca in a strong position to win the race for Williams’s signature and they are now said to be working on finalising a deal with Athletic.

A separate report from The Athletic, claims that Barca do not view the attacker’s €60m (£50m) release clause as an obstacle to a deal this summer, although they will likely encounter difficulty creating room in their wage budget in order to register him.

Williams joining up with Flick's side is seemingly not a forgone conclusion just yet, though, as Marca claims that Athletic are attempting to convince him to reject Barcelona and they remain hopeful that a move to Catalonia fails to materialise as it did last summer.

The Spain international is said to have already said yes to Barca on three separate occasions - albeit backing out twice before - and it is now thought that the situation is both ‘complicated and worrying’ from an Athletic perspective.

Athletic are now hoping to persuade Williams to stay at the club by offering him a new contract that would make him the club’s highest-paid player.

Williams to link up with Yamal at Barca?

Williams has established himself as a star player at Athletic since making his senior debut in 2021 and has made a total of 167 appearances for the club, scoring 31 goals and registering 30 assists.

The attacker elevated his game to new heights on international duty with Spain when they won Euro 2024 last summer, before recording 11 goals and seven assists in 45 matches for Athletic in all competitions in the 2024-25 campaign, helping the club secure a top-four finish in La Liga.

Williams has understandably caught the eye of several top European clubs, including Bayern, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool, but it now seems that he has made a move to Barcelona his priority.

He views the Catalan club in particular as an appealing destination, given his close bond with compatriot Lamine Yamal who recently committed his future to Camp Nou by signing a long-term contract until 2031.

Written by
Oliver Thomas