FC Barcelona are on the verge of completing their first signing of the summer with Joan Garcia set to arrive from RCD Espanyol.
The 24-year-old goalkeeper has agreed a five-year contract with the Blaugrana until 2030 and the only step that now remains is for the La Liga champions to activate his €25 million release clause, which will be done next week.
A deal for Garcia was not straightforward, considering that he was attracting a lot of interest from clubs in the Premier League as well as Real Madrid.
But Barcelona have managed to convince the Spaniard to make the switch from Espanyol to Barcelona – a move that has already sparked fury among his boyhood club’s fans.
Hansi Flick’s key role
Now, according to journalist Guillem Boras Perez, Barcelona manager Hansi Flick was a key factor in ensuring Joan Garcia ended up choosing the club.
Indeed, the 60-year-old German tactician is understood to have personally spoken with the goalkeeper, including once last night, following which the player gave his final green light to the deal.
As was reported previously, Flick, as well as club sporting director Deco, provided guarantees to Garcia that he would be the regular starter in goal amid concerns that Marc-Andre ter Stegen’s presence could hurt his chances of playing.
The conversations and assurances from the Blaugrana manager have seemingly played a key role in convincing Garcia that this was the right move for his career, especially considering that clubs in the Premier League would have proposed more lucrative contract offers.
As mentioned previously Barcelona will now pay Garcia’s €25 million release clause next week following which the operation will be completed.
