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Arthur Melo is set to complete his move from Barcelona to Serie A champions Juventus over the weekend
The two clubs have now completed a deal for the Brazilian. He is part of Barcelona’s squad for Saturday’s La Liga clash at Celta Vigo but will fly to Italy after the match for a medical, according to Moisés Llorens and Sam Marsden at ESPN.
Arthur will sign a five-year deal with Juventus and triple his salary in Turin, according to Sport’s Lluis Miguelsanz. The Italian team will pay €70 million ($78m) for the midfielder, while Barcelona will then sign Miralem Pjanic from Juventus for €60m ($67m) in what is essentially a swap deal.
The 23-year-old Brazil international only signed for Barcelona in 2018 from Gremio for €40m ($44m) and has made a total of 70 appearances for the Catalan giants in just under two years at the Camp Nou.
Arthur Will Still Finish the Season With Barcelona
Although Arthur is close to completing a move to Juventus he will still finish the season with Barcelona. Manager Quique Setien spoke about his midfielder in Friday’s pre-match press conference and wants him focussed for the title run-in.
“What’s happening now is completely out of the ordinary. I suppose any player who finds himself in any situation like this has to be clear the season isn’t over and there are still very important games to play. I’m sure Arthur, like the rest of his team-mates, wants to end the season well, win a trophy and leave behind a good memory until the final day they are here.”
Setien and Arthur were also spotted in deep discussion during the club’s training session on Friday afternoon. The conversation between the pair left Barca fans wondering just what they were talking about.
Javier Miguel at AS reported that Setien was checking on Arthur’s “frame of mind” to see if he was in good shape to play Celta on Saturday. The midfielder admitted the current situation is “not easy” but told his boss “he is fully prepared.”
Will Arthur Start at Celta?
Yet it’s not clear if Arthur will actually start the game or begin on the bench. Setien’s men are short of options in midfield which will boost his chance of being in the starting XI.
Dutch midfielder Frenkie de Jong and Sergi Roberto are both out of the match due to injury, while Sergio Busquets has also missed the trip to Vigo because of suspension.
Arthur, Ivan Rakitic, and Arturo Vidal are the only senior midfielders in the squad, although Barcelona B youngsters Riqui Puig, Alex Collado, and Monchu have been named in the traveling party. Of the three Puig is the most likely to come into the team.
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