Barcelona rival Man City and Man United with £21m bid for Roma starlet

Barcelona are set to launch a staggering £21m bid for Manchester United and Manchester City target Marquinhos - despite the fact he's only 18.

The defender only joined Roma from Corinthians last year but he has already settled at the Italian side, managing 20 Serie A appearances this term.

His mature displays have alerted Europe's top sides, who are all willing to offer much more than the £2.6m Roma paid to bring him to the Stadio Olimpico.

With Carles Puyol reaching the latter stages of his career, Barcelona are keen to add some youth to their defensive options and reports in Italy claim they are readying a whopping £21m bid for Marquinhos.

And news of Barcelona's interest could force the Premier League's top two into making offers of their own at the end of the season.