The Blaugrana could be on the verge of sealing a deal for out-of-favour central defender Samuel Umtiti to Italian minnows Lecce.
Barca have been trying to offload the French international for some time but have been unable to find a buyer due to his wages and injury history. A move to Ligue1 side Rennes was discussed earlier but never materialised for unknown reasons.
A return to Umtiti’s former club Olympique Lyon had also been discussed, but as things stand, the 28-year-old could be on his way to Italy as a move to Lecce becomes more likely.
Gianluca Di Marzio reports that Lecce and Barcelona are in the final stages of negotiating a deal for Umtiti and are finalising the details of the bonus payments that will be owed to the Catalans.
Umtiti will fly to the south-east of Italy tomorrow, skipping training in order to complete the move to newly-promoted Serie A outfit Lecce, who are looking to strengthen their defence after losing their first two games of the season.
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Barcelona are expected to pay the entire 20 million euros gross salary of the 2018 FIFA World Cup winner. However, they will be owed bonus payments from Lecce if the defender makes a certain number of appearances.
According to the report, Umtiti is owed 52 million by Barcelona under the terms of his current contract. The Frenchman’s previous contract was set to expire in 2023, but the Catalans gave him a downward renewal in January of this year, extending it until 2026 in order to sign Ferran Torres during the winter window.
Umtiti was owed 57 million over 18 months at the time of the renewal. Following the extension, Barça’s payment was reduced to 52 million, which was spread out until 2026. The 52 million is said to be split into 40 million fixed payments and 12 million variable payments.
Umtiti’s career has been stalled for years, and a move to Italy, away from the spotlight, could be just what he needs to get back on track.
Signed from Lyon in 2016, the Frenchman had a couple of good seasons at Barcelona before things went south. He only played one game last season and will be looking to get back into the line-up.
