Barcelona's vice-president, Rafael Yuste, has today admitted that the club is holding 'open talks' with the Valencia forward, David Villa.

Speaking on 'Catalunya Ràdio' Yuste made it clear that the discussions are 'open' and that it was a decision for the 'technical secretary and the manager'.

'Apart from our interest in Villa,' he pointed out, 'there are many, many players who want to come to Barça and people ought to be aware of that.'  He underlined the club's 'achievements' and said that top-flight footballers used 'Barça as a reference'.

The radio interview mirrored reports in today's 'Mundo Deportivo' that Barça had joined the bidding for Valencia's striker and that they had offered 35 million for him.