Andoni Zubizarreta has claimed Barcelona are not thinking about selling Seydou Keita in the close season.
The midfielder, whose contract runs until June 2014, has been linked with a move away from the club, but they are hopeful Mali international Keita will instead commit his future to the Camp Nou.
“We’re talking about a player who we value enormously,” sporting director Zubizarreta said.
“We want him on the team. We’ve told him as much and we hope he says yes. Our desire is that he’ll be with us on the 16th (of July).”
Zubizarreta also discussed Thiago Alcantara’s fitness, and confirmed the young midfielder’s absence from the Spain squad for the 2012 London Olympics due to injury is bad news for all parties concerned.
“The player has put in a lot of effort to go to the Olympics. Contact between the Barcelona doctors and the Spanish Olympic doctors has been ongoing,” said.
“Unfortunately, Thiago has not fully recovered from his injury and cannot return to training. This is bad news for everybody.
“We’ll see what we can to do to ensure his return to the football pitch.”
Spain have been paired with Japan, Honduras and Morocco for the Under-23 Olympic tournament in the UK.
