Barcelona sign Ilkay Gundogan - Fabrizio Romano

Suraj Radia

• Updated: 21 Jun 2023 19:35 BST
• 4 min read

Barcelona are close to making their first signing of the summer, having been given the thumbs up by both La Liga and president Joan Laporta to sign Ilkay Gundogan on a free transfer.

The German midfielder is out of contract at Manchester City and, despite Pep Guardiola being keen to keep Gundogan at the club, the 32-year-old has agreed to move to Barcelona after the Catalan outfit were given approval to register him as a new signing.

Barca have struggled with their finances in recent years and were told by La Liga that they could not register new players until they raised funds from sales, an issue which prevented them from pulling off the signing of Lionel Messi.

OPTIONS: Five Barcelona players who could leave this summer

According to reporter Fabrizio Romano, Gundogan has penned a two-year deal with Barca with the option of a third and there is a release clause of €500 million in the contract.

Gundogan had reportedly been in negotiations with Barcelona for a significant period of time after entering the final six months of his contract at City but doubts had initially manifested over the La Liga side’s ability to sign him despite their confidence.

However, a medical has already been conducted and the deal is believed to have been sanctioned by La Liga, with Laporta also giving a thumbs up when asked about the deal by reporter Josep Soldado.

Gundogan leaves City

Gundogan was Guardiola’s first signing at City when he arrived in 2016 and the ex-Dortmund man have been an integral part of the team’s success since, scoring 60 goals across 304 games in all competitions.

City won 14 trophies during Gundogan’s seven years at the club including their first ever Champions League title earlier this month, which he captained the team to, as well scoring twice to win the FA Cup final over rivals Manchester United.

While Guardiola was desperate to keep hold of his captain, Gundogan was believed to be keen on a new challenge, having been pursued by Barcelona for a number of years.

HIJACK: Man City look to beat rivals to top summer target

City are in negotiations with Chelsea to sign Mateo Kovacic for €25m, with the Croatian expected to be a replacement for Gundogan, although Guardiola’s side could still sign another option such as Declan Rice, who is also wanted by Arsenal.