Barcelona confirm signing of Atletico Madrid forward Joao Felix on ...
Barcelona have confirmed the signing of Joao Felix on a season-long loan from Atletico Madrid.
The Portuguese international had said earlier in the summer that it had been his “dream” to play for Barcelona, and amid speculation that offers came in from elsewhere, including from the Saudi Pro League, Felix remained at Atleti until the final day of the transfer window.
Felix had fallen out of favour with his manager at the Wanda Metropolitano, Diego Simeone, and spent the second half of last season on loan at Chelsea, though the Premier League side did not finalise a permanent deal for the 23-year-old.
He scored four times in 20 appearances for Chelsea.
The striker’s comments about Barcelona being his dream club further isolated him from the side he had joined from Benfica for €126 million in 2019. In 131 games for Atletico, he scored 34 times, and the return of Antoine Griezmann from Barcelona gave him less opportunity to earn minutes on the pitch.
During his time at Atletico, he won La Liga in the 2020/21 season as the sole honour.
He joins a Barcelona side who are the current Liga champions under Xavi Hernandez, who have operated under difficult financial conditions in order to meet their Financial Fair Play obligations.
The club wrote on their official website: "FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid have reached an agreement for the loan of the player João Félix until 30 June 2024. There is no option for a permanent transfer. The club wishes to thank the player publicly for the financial effort made and his desire to wear the Barça shirt."
Barcelona have also signed Oriol Romeu for around £3 m from Girona, and signed Ilkay Gundogan and Inigo Martinez on free transfers.
Ousmane Dembele joined Paris Saint-Germain, Ansu Fati has been loaned to Brighton, Franck Kessie left for Al-Ahli, Trincao moved to Sporting, and Jordi Alba, Sergio Busques and Samuel Umtiti left on free transfers, while Sergino Dest and Clement Lenglet were also loaned out.
Barcelona are expected to announce the signing of Joao Cancelo from Manchester City later on Friday evening.
TNT Sports presents the premium live sports rights previously carried by BT Sport including the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Conference League, Gallagher Premiership Rugby, Heineken Champions Cup, EPCR Challenge Cup, MotoGP, Cricket, UFC, Boxing and WWE. The streaming home for TNT Sports in the UK is discovery+, where fans can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. You can also watch TNT Sports through BT, EE, Sky, and Virgin Media
