More details are emerging on the completely unexpected deal for Lecce to sign Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti.
The news was broken by Sky Sport Italia transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio this morning and took everyone by surprise.
Umtiti was purchased in 2016 from Olympique Lyonnais for €25m and recently signed a new contract to June 2026.
He has struggled badly with injuries in recent years and that saw the France international’s value on the transfer market plummet.
Barcelona hope that by loaning Umtiti out, he can rediscover his form with regular playing time.
According to Tuttomercatoweb, Lecce really are getting a remarkable deal out of this, as Barcelona would pay practically Umtiti’s entire salary for this season.
The only payment made by Lecce to the defender would be for his performance-related bonuses.
His salary had been one of the main sticking points when the likes of Milan, Napoli and Juventus were linked with Umtiti earlier in the summer.
The 28-year-old was also of interest to Olympique Lyonnais.