Cancelo signs today. Yesterday Barça kept him in the tunnel

João Cancelo will officially become an FC Barcelona player today. The Portuguese defender is due to sign his contract in Joan Laporta’s office before being presented to the media at 1:45pm. One day earlier, he was already wearing the club’s kit, had the number 2 on his back and was waiting to walk out in front of the supporters. Only one minor detail was missing: Barcelona had not completed his transfer.

Cancelo was standing in the tunnel with the rest of the squad during Wednesday’s team presentation before the Joan Gamper Trophy. He was dressed and ready to step onto the Spotify Camp Nou pitch, but his name was never announced.

Footage from the tunnel showed him waiting in full Barcelona kit. Lamine Yamal even appeared to ask whether he was going out. Cancelo could only respond with a resigned gesture. There are probably not many suitable answers when you already have the shirt, the number and a place beside your teammates, yet officially remain a player of another club.

Barcelona attempted to complete the paperwork before the presentation began. They ran out of time. Cancelo therefore remained behind the scenes and his official return was delayed by several hours. Barça had once again managed to turn a player walking out of a tunnel into a two-part administrative drama.

The situation is expected to be resolved today. Cancelo will sign the agreement in the president’s office alongside his agent, Jorge Mendes, before appearing in front of the media. According to reports in Spain, his contract will run until 30 June 2029.

The defender joins on a free transfer after terminating his contract with Al-Hilal. His agreement in Saudi Arabia had been due to expire in 2027, but Cancelo made it clear that he wanted to return to Catalonia. Reports also indicate that he gave up part of the money owed to him to make the operation possible.

That detail makes Wednesday’s scene even more striking. Cancelo made a financial sacrifice to move closer to Barcelona, Barcelona prepared his shirt, and then both parties reached the tunnel only for the paperwork to inform them that the happy ending would have to wait.

This will be the 32-year-old’s third spell with Barça, but his first as a permanent Barcelona player. He initially arrived on loan from Manchester City for the 2023/24 season. He returned in January 2026 on another temporary deal, this time from Al-Hilal. His new contract is expected to keep him at the club for another three seasons.

Cancelo becomes Barcelona’s fifth signing of the summer after Anthony Gordon, Karim Adeyemi, Jesse Bisiwu and Rodri. Hansi Flick already knows the Portuguese defender, who was mainly used on the left side of defence during the second half of last season but is also capable of playing on the right. His versatility gives the coach another option while the club continues to make decisions over the futures of several defenders.

From a financial perspective, the transfer itself is difficult to criticise. Barça are adding an experienced player who already knows the team without paying a transfer fee, while Cancelo clearly wanted the move. The club still found enough room for an operational complication, meaning the first memorable image of his latest return was not a contract signing or a smile beside Laporta, but a player turning away inside the tunnel.

At 1:45pm, the paperwork should finally catch up with the shirt Barcelona had already prepared. After that, the club can move on to the next traditional stage of its summer: trying to register every new signing on time.