Barcelona announce signing of defensive addition on loan

Barcelona have announced that Joao Cancelo will put pen to paper on a loan deal on Tuesday, as he completes a loan move to return to the club. The Portuguese defender left the Blaugrana 18 months ago after a loan spell from Manchester City, when Barcelona did not pursue his permanent signature.

Cancelo, keen to leave Al-Hilal during the January transfer window, had interest from Inter and Juventus, and agreed a deal to return to Inter. Initially it seemed that Barcelona, who had enquired about Cancelo, had discarded the idea due to disagreements on his return internally. However after a meeting between agent Jorge Mendes and Barcelona President Joan Laporta, the Catalan giants submitted a loan offer until the end of the season. It is thought that Cancelo was highly keen on a move back to Barcelona, and held out for the switch.

Barcelona announce Cancelo deal will be completed on Tuesday

The 31-year-old had flown into Barcelona on Monday, and underwent a medical, which he passed. Barcelona announced that on Tuesday at 13:00, the official signing would take place, with a press conference to follow. He joins on loan until the end of the season, although there does not appear to be an option to make the deal permanent.

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Deco’s explanation of Cancelo signing

Manager Hansi Flick had initially been urging the club to bring in a central defender to make up for the loss of Andreas Christensen, but declared he was happy to have another offensive option on the books, and a player that could play on both flanks. Director of Football Deco noted that a number of ‘happy coincidences’ had allowed the deal to go ahead, and declared that if the opportunity was there to improve the squad, it made little sense not to take it.

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