After Chelsea rejected their bid for Willian, Barcelona quickly made sure their plan B was signed, sealed and delivered and a Ligue 1 manager has compared him to Lionel Messi.
Barcelona is looking for more goals, with manager Ernesto Valverde looking to reduce the pressure on both Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez. However, with the club letting Paulinho go after just one season at the Camp Nou, the Catalan giants hijacked AS Roma’s deal for Bordeaux star Malcom and convince the Ligue 1 club with a better offer.
The 21-year-old made his way to Barcelona in a rather dramatic twist despite the underlying fact that the Ligue 1 side has agreed to a £30 plus million deal for the youngster with AS Roma. The Ligue 1 side reneged on their deal with the Serie A side, who have already signed the likes of Justin Kluivert, Javier Pastore and many others in this transfer window.
However, with the Brazilian international moving to Barcelona in a £36.5 million deal, late last night and Malcom is expected to under-go his medical soon. The highly-rated Brazilian has won plaudits after his performances for Bordeaux, flourishing under manager Gus Poyet. But the 21-year-old has been targeted by many clubs ever since he moved through the ranks at Corinthians at a stunning pace.
However, with a move to Bordeaux in January of 2016, the 21-year-old has been in incredible form for his new club. With nine goals and seven more assists, Malcom already became a target for Europe’s top clubs, but AS Roma pipped them to a deal before Barcelona walked in. And now Bordeaux manager Gus Poyet has revealed that the Brazilian is just like Lionel Messi.
“He’s totally prepared,” Poyet revealed in an interview.“It depends on the system, but he can play on both sides. In some ways, similar to [Leo] Messi, coming in from the right. But in a squad like Barcelona’s, it won’t be difficult for him to adapt.”
DID YOU KNOW?
🇧🇷 New signing Malcom will become the 40th Brazilian in history to play for Barcelona. 🔵🔴#UCL pic.twitter.com/mWgOiWa2Si
— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) July 25, 2018
The 21-year-old joins fellow Brazilian Arthur Melo and former Sevilla star Clement Lenglet to become Barcelona’s third acquisition. The Catalan giants have also let go of Gerard Deulofeu, Paulinho, Andres Iniesta, and brought up Carles Alena and Marc Cucurella from the Barcelona B squad.
Author’s take:
Comparing a youngster like Malcom to Lionel Messi is far too much pressure for a 21 year old. But given that his move to Barcelona has been confirmed, the Brazilian international will have to fight with Ousmane Dembele for his favored right-wing position but he certainly has the talent and mindset to do so.
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