The return of the 'Joaos' to the first team of FC Barcelona is completely ruled out. After Felix decided to head to London to wear the Chelsea shirt again, Cancelo, who played last season in Barcelona on loan from Manchester City, is one step away from packing his bags for Saudi Arabia to become a new player for Neymar Jr's Al-Hilal.
The 30-year-old full-back was an undisputed player for the Blaugrana team last season, where he played 42 games, being Xavi's wild card by playing on both wings. Despite his irregular performance, both the Catalan club and the player intended to unite their destinies again this summer, but the problems of the Catalans with financial fair play and the high demands of City, who preferred to transfer him instead of loaning him out, made his operation unaffordable for the club.
Joao, who has been wanting to decide his future for several weeks, has waited for the Blaugrana club until the last week of the transfer market, although he had already been aware for a few days that Can Barça could not afford to sign him, as reported by the newspaper 'SPORT'. For this reason, the Portuguese has made the decision to form part of the squad led by Jorge Jesus in the Saudi Pro League.
Al-Hilal will comply with the demands of the 'citizen' institution and will deposit 25 million euros for the transfer of the defender, while Cancelo will sign a three-year contract, until June 2027. According to what was disclosed by Fabrizio Romano, the footballer has already passed a first medical examination and the verbal agreement between all parties has already been made, which will mean an income of 15 million euros net per campaign.
Marc Pubill gains strength
With Cancelo's arrival at the Spotify Camp Nou ruled out, Marc Pubill appears as the new option for the Barcelona institution to reinforce the right side of the rearguard of Hansi Flick's team. The Catalans have already offered Almería a paid loan of 5 million euros plus an option to buy the winner of the gold medal with the Olympic team in Paris 2024, so his signing would depend on certain details, such as the possibility of registering him, to be considered closed.