Barcelona confirm that they can re-sign Everton winger Gerard Deulofeu, who is currently on loan at AC Milan, in the summer for €12 million.
According to a report from Spanish publication SPORT, Barcelona’s Secretary Robert Fernandez recently confirmed that the Catalan giants could sign the 23-year-old Spaniard who is currently on loan at AC Milan, at the end of the season, for a mere €12 million euros.
Fernandez has refused to rule out a move for Deulofeu at the end of the campaign. He been featuring regularly for the Serie A giants and his impressive form has seen him get called up to the Spanish national team and Fernandez insisted that he was ‘happy’ with the current situation.
He said: “We have the possibility and it’s good. I am very happy with what’s happening. Deulofeu was at Everton and not playing. He went on loan to Milan, where he’s playing and has been called up to the Spanish National team squad. It’s good news. I think it’s 12 million to bring him back.”
Deulofeu came through the youth ranks of Barcelona after signing for them in 2003 as a 9-year-old. He made his debut for Barcelona in 2011 and after making only 6 appearances in two seasons at the Nou Camp, he was loaned out to Everton in 2013, in a bid to get more experience.
His spell at Goodison Park would prove to be a huge success. Under the management of Roberto Martinez, he made a total of 29 appearances for the Toffees across all competitions that season and scored 4 goals and registered 5 assists in the process.
Had it not been for injuries that kept him out for a good 5 weeks, he would have surely have had an even greater impact. His contribution helped Everton collect their highest ever points tally of 72 and they finished fifth in the Premier League standings.
The La Masia product was recalled to the Spanish top flight by Barcelona in 2014 and in August, he was sent on a loan to Sevilla, likely to gain experience in the Spanish top flight. With Pedro and Neymar already at the club and Suarez joining them in July, it was unlikely that Deulofeu would get many opportunities to feature.
Despite adding a UEFA Europa League medal to his collection, his time in Seville wasn’t a pleasant one. He made only 28 appearances across all competitions that entire season, starting a mere 15 games, and scoring 3 and assisting 10 goals in the process in the process.
He returned to Everton the following season, this time on a permanent deal said to be worth around £4.2 million. In his first season back, he matched his previous season’s goal tally of 4 goals and also register 13 assists across all competitions.
This season under Ronald Koeman, he barely featured for Everton and made only 13 appearances across all competitions for the Toffees, in the first half of the season. After failing to make it to even the first team squad, he was shipped off to AC Milan in January this year.
The Spaniard has slowly begun to find his form at the San Siro under the watchful eyes of Vincenzo Montella and is now one of the first names on the team sheet. Featuring predominantly on the left wing, he has made 9 Serie A appearances so far and has scored 1 goal and provided 3 assists.
Deulofeu’s status as a first team regular is cemented at the San Siro, he found some of his old form and he has received his first senior National team call up. Needless to say, his stint in the Italian top flight is proving to be a successful one.
It remains to be seen whether Barcelona chose to exercise his release clause, given that they already have the likes of Neymar, Messi and Rafinha in their squad and more importantly, whether the 23-year-old would even want to return to the Nou Camp.
This is likely a decision that will be taken by the new Barcelona manager, who will replace Luis Enrique at the end of the season. However, Deulofeu will be wary of what happened when Enrique recalled him back in 2014, only to loan him out and it is unlikely that the winger will consider a return, unless he receives assurances of regular game time.
