FC Barcelona just confirmed the transfer of their very own midfielder Arthur Melo to Juventus F.C., following a swap deal for the Italian club’s Miralem Pjanic.
Brazillian midfielder Arthur Melo has been with FC Barcelona since 2018. He’s played a total of 72 games for the club.
Per Barcelona’s official announcement, the breakdown of Melo’s played game entails, “47 in the league, 10 in the Copa del Rey, 13 in the Champions League and one in the Spanish Super Cup.”
LATEST NEWS | Agreement with @juventusfcen for the transfer of @arthurhromelo
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) June 29, 2020
Arthur Melo transfer deal
The announcement from Barcelona came fresh on Monday morning, June 29. As stated, “FC Barcelona and Juventus FC have reached an agreement” worth €72 million [AU$117.6 million], plus the addition of €10 million in variables.
Nevertheless, football fans should not fret, as Melo will still play for Barcelona until the end of La Liga season 2019-20, where Barca struggles to overthrow Real Madrid at the top ranks of this season’s standings.
In a tweet, Melo expressed his gratitude for Juventus, in their interest for him to be part of their Italian club. In his follow-up tweet, he expressed that this present goal is to give everything for Barcelona, his teammates, and his fans.
Ahora enfocados en el presente, tenemos objetivos importantes en Barcelona y voy a seguir hasta el final dándolo todo: por mis compañeros y todos los aficionados. Moltes gràcies pel suport! Fins demà. 👍🏻
— Arthur Melo (@arthurhromelo) June 29, 2020
The transfer turned out to be a Miralem Pjanic swap deal
A separate statement was issued for Miralem Pjanic’s transfer confirmation to FC Barcelona. Several media outlets then confirmed that Barcelona and Juventus did agree for a midfielder swap deal.
According to Forbes, Italian sources have hinted the swap prior to the announcement, after “Juventus conducted medicals” for both midfielders.
For Pjanic’s deal inclusion, an excerpt of the official statement reads:
The player will sign a contract with the club for the next four seasons, until the end of the 2023/24 season, with a buy out clause of 400 million euros. The player will remain with Juventus until the 2019/20 season is over.
The Bosnian professional footballer Miralem Pjanic, 30, transfer deal was worth €60 million, with €5 million in add-ons, per the announcement.
UFFICIALE | @Miralem_Pjanic e @arthurhromelo, gli accordi con @FCBarcelona
➡️ https://t.co/lK0goKOKAh pic.twitter.com/8vO7YckjTP
— JuventusFC (@juventusfc) June 29, 2020
Pjanic started his football career in 2007. He is said to be an essential player for the Metz, most especially during the Champions League Season 2009-10 when the team reached the semi-finals for the first time. He then moved forward with his career in Italy in 2011 with AS Roma.
It was only in 2016 when he started playing for Juventus, winning “three Serie A titles, two Coppa Italia crowns, and one Italian Super Cup,” per Football Paradise.
Both midfielders have promising careers ahead of them. Currently, Juventus is sitting at the top of serie A Season 2019-20.
Featured image courtesy of FC Barcelona