Supporters searching for “Carlos Espi Barcelona rejected” will find the same story we reported before, now updated for 4 October 2026. Cadena SER, relayed by journalist Sique Rodríguez, claim Barcelona were offered the young forward before his move to Real Madrid and turned the deal down.
Nothing here comes from an official club statement. It is a reported transfer tale, not a confirmed one, but it has resurfaced in the Spanish press and is worth setting out plainly.
Existing section kept in order: reported Barcelona offer and rejection
According to Cadena SER, Espi was presented to Barcelona before he ended up at Real Madrid. Rodríguez put it simply: “Carlos Espi was offered to Barca, who consider him a good player.”
Admiration didn’t translate into a deal, though. Rodríguez explained the thinking behind the rejection: “They rejected it, among other reasons, because they were not willing to pay €25 million for someone who was not going to be a starter.” That is the heart of the report: a club unwilling to spend big on a squad option, however promising he looked.
Barcelona’s alternative plan
Rather than back Espi at that price, Barcelona turned to a different option. According to Rodríguez, the club’s bet instead is on Hamza Abdelkarim, a young forward they see as a possible plan B up front.
The logic, in Rodríguez’s account, is simple enough. A young, low cost prospect is an easier risk to carry than a big fee for a squad player who was not going to start every week.
What the report means for Real Madrid
For Madrid, the detail changes little about Espi’s current place in the squad, but it does reframe how he got there. If the report is accurate, Real Madrid picked up a player Barcelona had already looked at and walked away from, on financial grounds rather than footballing ones.
Until a club confirms it, the Carlos Espi Barcelona rejected claim stays exactly that: a claim, not a settled fact. Cadena SER’s report also places Jose Mourinho inside that same account, naming him as part of the story Rodríguez has relayed rather than as someone who has confirmed any of it himself. We aren’t adding anything beyond what has been reported.
What happens next
Neither Real Madrid nor Barcelona have addressed the report publicly, so it remains unverified beyond Cadena SER’s account, as laid out in the original report. The exact timing of any offer, and the full detail of how Espi’s move to Madrid came together, are still unconfirmed.
Supporters should treat this as a transfer story still in motion rather than settled history. We’ll update again if either club, or a second outlet, adds anything firmer.
