Barcelona risk losing Palmeiras wonderkid Gabriel Veron to Manchester United or Manchester City this year.
Sport says Veron, 18, is attracting solid interest in each of Europe's major leagues but it is Premier League giants United and City who have taken rapid steps and 'moved behind the scenes'.
However, Barcelona 'control the player's situation,' given his apparent childhood ambition to play at the Nou Camp.
But Barca currently find themselves in a dire financial situation, and look increasingly likely to be unable to dip into the transfer market for the foreseeable future.
Added to this, the situation becomes yet further complicated because the Catalan club are yet to elect their new president, meaning budget allocations and concrete transfer plans are yet to be determined.
The path therefore is reported to have been somewhat cleared for United and City to make their advances, with both clubs said to be aware of Barca's 'difficulty' and are eager to capitalise.
Veron has eight goals and three assists in 33 games since breaking through into the Palmeiras senior ranks.
He has featured at each international age level for Brazil from the U16 to U20s set-up, and was the winner of the Golden Ball award at the U17 World Cup held in his homeland, highlighting him as the tournament's best player.
Veron is contracted to Palmeiras until 2025 and has a £53million (€60m) release clause written into his current contract.