It looks as though Barcelona have found,
and signed, their much desired backup to
the best attacking trio in the world.
The Catalan giants have reached a verbal
agreement with Sevilla to sign striker
Kevin Gameiro on a permanent deal,
Barça Blaugranes has learned. The
Frenchman will arrive this summer at
the opening of the transfer window and
sign a four-year contract with the
Blaugrana.
Gameiro has been linked with Barça for
a while, but the interest from the club
has intensified in the last few months
when the first option transfer, Celta Vigo
winger Nolito, did not work. Sporting
director Robert Fernández and his team
then shifted their priority to Sevilla's
highest scorer this season, and the two
clubs have been working out on a deal
for months, according to sources.
Sevilla first asked for a €30 million
transfer fee, which the Catalans
attempted to bring down in further
negotiations. The Rojiblancos did not
lower their asking price, which is when
Barça threw in a player in return:
Croatian prospect Alen Halilovic,
currently on loan at Sporting Gijón , along
with a €20 million fee. Sevilla accepted,
and if the deal goes through, the 19-year-
old midfielder will sign a permanent
contract, but Barça will keep a buy-back
clause of around €10 million to bring
Halilovic back to Camp Nou after the first
year of his new deal.
When the two teams finally reached an
agreement, it was time to convince the
player. Gameiro has exploded this season,
scoring 24 goals in 47 appearances this
season and catching attention from other
European giants. The Frenchman would
need to accept a very limited amount of
minutes with Barça since he is going to
serve as a backup to the 'MSN' trio.
Because of his speed and ability to play
in all three positions of the attack, his
chances of playing more often increase,
and he could have a similar role as Pedro
Rodríguez had in his final year as a
Blaugrana.
Gameiro has also accepted the conditions,
and is keen on moving to Catalonia at
season's end. Unless something crazy
happens, Barcelona have secured their
first signing for the 2016/17 season.
