Lyon forward Memphis Depay has admitted he came inches from joining Barcelona last week before his dream move collapsed on deadline day.
The Dutch star, captain of the French outfit, had been linked with the Spanish giants all summer and looked set to seal the transfer on the final day of the window, with Lyon reportedly dropping their asking price to £23million to get it done.
But cash-strapped Barcelona still couldn't afford to sanction the move having failed to get Ousmane Dembele's hefty wage off their books - with the Frenchman declining a loan move to Manchester United.