Barcelona more concerned about Umtiti's form than his renewal Barcelona His play has been inconsistent in recent weels

Samuel Umtiti's stock has risen greatly over the past two seasons and he knows it, but Barcelona's current focus is on how he'll perform between now and the end of the season, rather than on renewing his contract.

When he arrived in 2016 for 25 million euros he signed a deal that was appropriate at the time, with which he'd earn 3m euros per season and which had a release clause of 60m euros.

That clause is now very affordable for a centre-back of his quality, given how the transfer market has changed and the defender recently admitted on Canal Plus that he has had offers from other clubs and that he hasn't yet started negotiating a new deal with Barcelona.

In the Camp Nou offices, the view is that these declarations have been made with the intention of bettering the deal which will be offered to him.

President Josep Maria Bartomeu and his fellow directors believe that Umtiti's renewal should be a structural one and that improving his wages will work out cheaper in the long run than allowing him to go and then having to splash out on a replacement.

As such, their main focus right now is on his form, which has been inconsistent since the rumours of an exit began to circulate.