Simon Mignolet has emerged as a shock target for Barcelona, according to reports.
Besiktas are interested in Mignolet but Spanish outlet Marca now claim Barcelona also want the Belgian shot-stopper.
Marca report Mignolet is a potential replacement for Jasper Cillessen, who is expected to leave Barcelona.
They say he is competing with Wolfsburg keeper Koen Casteels as well as Yann Sommer from Borussia Monchengladbach.
On 25 June 2013, Mignolet signed with Liverpool for a reported fee of £9 million on a five-year contract. Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers hailed Mignolet as being “one of the top goalkeepers in the Premier League”. On 13 July 2013, he made his unofficial debut for Liverpool in a 4–0 win in a pre-season friendly over Preston North End.
On 17 August 2013, Mignolet made his official debut in the 1–0 home win against Stoke City at Anfield. In the 89th minute of the match, he saved a Jonathan Walters penalty, as well as Kenwyne Jones’ follow-up shot, to preserve Liverpool’s lead and effectively win the match. He then recorded two more clean sheets against Aston Villa and Manchester United, with both matches ending 1–0 in favour of Liverpool.
Two weeks later, he conceded his first goals for Liverpool in the Premier League in a 2–2 draw with Swansea City, though he was still named man of the match for the fixture. Mignolet was also named man of the match in the 3–3 draw with Everton, making nine saves throughout the match.
On 14 December 2014, Mignolet’s run of 53 consecutive Premier League starts came to an end as he was replaced by Brad Jones in the starting 11 against Manchester United, with Brendan Rodgers saying Mignolet would be dropped for an “indefinite period”.
However, 12 days later, Jones went off injured after 16 minutes away at Burnley, and despite some errors, Mignolet kept a clean sheet in a 1–0 victory. After this match, Mignolet kept four consecutive clean sheets against Sunderland, Aston Villa, West Ham United and Everton respectively.
On 10 February, Mignolet made some outstanding saves against Tottenham Hotspur in a 3–2 win. On 16 March, Mignolet continued his resurgence in a 1–0 victory against Swansea, keeping a clean sheet as part of a strong performance. On 22 March, he saved a penalty taken by Wayne Rooney in a 2–1 defeat against Manchester United.
On 18 January 2016, Mignolet signed new five-year deal with the club. Eight days later, he saved a penalty from Stoke City’s Peter Crouch and Marc Muniesa in a penalty shoot-out to send Liverpool to the 2016 Football League Cup Final at Wembley Stadium.
Although he started the first five matches of the season, Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp dropped Mignolet in favor of new signing Loris Karius on 24 September 2016 for the match against Hull City. On 24 October 2016, Klopp confirmed Mignolet was no longer Liverpool’s first-choice goalkeeper and that he will be given cup matches instead.
However, Mignolet returned to the starting lineup for the team in Premier League in December 2016. On 23 September 2017, Mignolet saved his club-record 8th penalty, preserving a 3–2 victory over Leicester City. On 26 December, Mignolet and teammate Philippe Coutinho both made their 200th appearances for Liverpool in a 5–0 Premier League win over Swansea.