At long last, FC Barcelona look set to have advanced at the very final tunings and stages of one of their most sought after targets during this summer transfer window, and with close to only ten days left in said window, Barcelona would do well to close ongoing operations as soon as possible.
The primary priority for Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez at the moment remains 29-year-old Portuguese star and Manchester City fullback Joao Cancelo, who the Barcelona coach considers to be an essential piece to acquire in order to reinforce his team even further.
In a massively positive update, Spanish outlet SPORT reports that FC Barcelona have reached an agreement in principle with English Premier League outfit Manchester City for the 29-year-old Joao Cancelo to arrive on loan at Barcelona for the 2023/2024 season.
The reported details provided suggest that while the loan deal will only be applicable for a singular season, there is an option to buy attached to the deal worth close to €30 million in what is not an obligatory fee unless certain conditions are met as applied by Manchester City within the deal.
According to the report, the mandatory buy clause will come into effect if Joao Cancelo ends up playing 70% or more of the total games played by FC Barcelona in the 2023/2024 season, or if Barcelona manage to reach the Round of 16 of the UEFA Champions League.
As for the time frame of his arrival, SPORT speculates that the next hours will be key and by the start of the upcoming week at the latest, Joao Cancelo will be a FC Barcelona player and an official announcement is not too far away.
The report also highlights the efforts put in by both the Portuguese star himself and his agent, Jorge Mendes, in ensuring the deal between Manchester City and FC Barcelona ends up being finalised on good terms for all parties involved and particularly for Barca, who had previously made Mendes aware of their financial limitations going into this operation.
