Cancelo Lands in Barcelona After Making His Choice Perfectly Clear
Barcelona are one step away from completing a transfer in which the most determined negotiator was not sitting inside the club’s offices. João Cancelo landed in the Catalan capital on Monday and immediately made it clear just how badly he wanted to return permanently.
The Portuguese defender arrived in Barcelona at around 2pm. According to “AS”, he is scheduled to undergo his medical on Tuesday before signing a three-year contract. The club is expected to make the move official once those formalities have been completed.
Cancelo has terminated his contract with Al-Hilal and is set to join Barcelona without a transfer fee. He also agreed to give up part of the money he was owed in Saudi Arabia to make the move possible. Some players need to be convinced by a sporting project. Cancelo appears to have spent most of the negotiations convincing everyone else that he had no interest in any alternative.
Speaking after his arrival, the 32-year-old revealed that he had told Deco he would rather remain at Al-Hilal for a year without playing than abandon the opportunity to return to Barcelona. He also confirmed that he had sacrificed part of his salary and treated the decision as Barcelona or nothing.
Cancelo said he had been training separately during the previous week but was ready to help the team and compete for trophies. He was also enthusiastic about Barcelona’s summer business, saying that the club was building an excellent squad.
This will be Cancelo’s third spell at Barcelona but his first as a permanent player. He initially joined on loan for the 2023/24 season before returning from Al-Hilal on another temporary deal in January 2026. This time, he is expected to stay and once again provide Hansi Flick with an option on both sides of the defence.
Flick wanted to keep him, Cancelo had no intention of returning to Saudi Arabia and Al-Hilal agreed to end his contract early. Everyone involved ultimately got what they wanted. The largest financial concession, however, came from the player himself – something that is beginning to feel like a familiar requirement when Barcelona enter negotiations.
The medical examination, contract signing and official announcement are still to come. There have been no reports of registration problems at this stage. Even so, Barcelona have taught everyone to be careful whenever a deal reaches the famous “only the formalities remain” phase.
Sources: Cadena SER, AS, ESPN
