The summer of 2023 was very busy for Barcelona. The club, already without salary limits, embarked on a negotiation that nearly led to a swap deal involving Gavi moving to PSG in exchange for Verratti and Fabián Ruiz.
The then sporting director Ma Ur Alemany had the operation almost finalized, but Deco and Gavi himself opposed the move. Barcelona needed to strengthen their midfield and prioritized signing Fabián, but lacked the funds to do so directly.
PSG proposed including Gavi in the deal, and Luis Enrique, newly appointed PSG coach, agreed to keep Gavi with the club. However, Deco's intervention in Barcelona, forming a brief power struggle with Alemany, led to the deal's collapse.
Additionally, Barcelona was reluctant to take on Verratti’s contract and lose a homegrown talent to a club that had long challenged Barça — PSG had also paid €50 million for Ousmane Dembélé that same summer.
Gavi and his circle were against the move as his dream was to succeed at Barcelona. After the deal fell apart, Alemany was in a difficult position and eventually left the club following meetings with club leadership.
Other disagreements that summer included Alemany's near unilateral attempt to sign Villarreal’s Juan Foyth, which failed due to financial demands. Ultimately, each protagonist took different paths: Fabián thrived at PSG and extended his contract, Verratti moved to a Dubai club, and Gavi became a key player and symbol of Barcelona’s future.
Gavi has received multiple offers since but remains loyal to Barcelona. His focus is on recovering from a knee injury and giving back to the club all it has given him.
