Barcelona have completed the signing of Valencia’s Andre Gomes.
In a surprising turn of events, Barcelona have completed the signing of Valencia’s much sought after midfielder Andre Gomes. The midfielder had been strongly linked with a move to the Blaugrana’s Clasico rivals Real Madrid, and Chelsea after an impressive showing with Portugal during their successful European campaign.
[BREAKING NEWS] Agreement with Valencia CF for André Gomes #AndreGomesFCB pic.twitter.com/n1cmdHd4ET
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 21, 2016
The two clubs have reached an agreement and it is now left to Gomes to sign a five-year deal with the Catalans before he is unveiled next week. Reports from Spain claim that Barcelona have agreed on an initial fee of £29.1 million with further add-ons amounting upto £16.5 million for the 22-year old midfielder. Gomes will be Barcelona’s 4th signing of the summer after the arrivals of Denis Suarez, Lucas Digne and Samuel Umtiti.
The Blaugrana have been lauded for their impressive bit of business this summer as the club have completed all signings keeping one eye on the future.
Gomes’ signing for Barcelona will also come as a bitter pill to swallow for Real Madrid who were reportedly on-course to agreeing a deal for the midfielder. The 22-year old was a target for Florentino Perez even as the Los Blancos cooled down on their pursuit for Juventus’ Paul Pogba. Now that they’ve lost out on the Valencia midfielder as well, there is little for Real Madrid to look forward to in this summer transfer window.
What next for Real Madrid?
Gomes’ departure to Barcelona in addition to Pogba’s imminent move to Manchester United means Real Madrid have now lost out on two key summer targets and could be left without a major signing at the end of the transfer window. What will also concern Zidane & Co. is an impending transfer ban for the European Champions. Earlier in 2016, both the Madrid clubs were dished out a two-year transfer ban owing to violations pertaining to their signing of youth players.
FIFA however temporarily lifted the ban till a final decision was reached on the investigation, which allowed the two Spanish giants to complete their business during the course of the on-going transfer window. Zidane has claimed recently that his side is well stocked up and any new acquisition would only be a back-up option or even surplus to requirements. The club does house a galaxy of talent, but only time will tell whether that will be enough to sustain them through two years in light of their potential transfer ban.
