FC Barcelona have significantly strengthened their squad over the last summer. The Catalan club brought in a number of signings playing in all the areas of the pitch.
Two high-profile signings were made only on the last of the transfer window, as Barcelona got Joao Felix and Joao Cancelo on loan.
Both these players will significantly improve the squad’s quality, but it would have been impossible for Barcelona fans to imagine that they would join the club at the start of the summer window because of the financial condition of the club.
Difficulties in incorporating Felix
This was also the feeling of the Barcelona Sporting Director, Deco, during the presentation ceremony for Joao Felix. Deco commented: “We thought that under our current conditions, it was impossible for Joao Felix to come, given all the effort we had to make.”
Barcelona’s salary limit made it difficult for the club to incorporate Felix, especially as the club faced difficulties in collecting the €40 million from the Libero Football Fund. Atletico Madrid were also asking for a high fee for the player, in order to meet the amortization costs of the player.
Felix makes sacrifices to join Barcelona
However, Felix’s own commitment to play for Barcelona was decisive in such a context. The Portuguese publicly declared his admiration for Barcelona, thus closing the doors for other clubs as well as staying at Atletico Madrid.
Furthermore, Felix also made a huge economic effort as well. As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the Portugal international agreed to reduce his wages by half in order to get incorporated at Barcelona.
Felix also extended his contract with Atletico Madrid by two additional years before moving to Barcelona, which will allow the Mattress Makers to lower the amortization costs for the player. Thus, the Catalans also did not have to pay any fee for Felix.
