Barcelona confirm their first major signing of the summer

The LaLiga giants have welcomed Franck Kessie to Camp Nou on a free transfer.

Barcelona have confirmed an agreement is in place to sign Franck Kessie this summer.

The 25-year-old Ivorian midfielder is a free agent after leaving AC Milan at the end of his contract in June. He accepted a four-season deal to join Barcelona until June 2026 and completed his medical in March. The agreement includes a €500 million buyout clause, plus a reported salary of around €6.5 million net per campaign.

Kessie will sign the contract and be presented to the media at the club’s Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper training complex on Wednesday.

𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐎𝐅𝐅𝐈𝐂𝐈𝐀𝐋! 😏

Welcome, Kessie! 💙❤️ pic.twitter.com/wG051AUnpT

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 4, 2022

Christensen is next in line

Monday’s announcement makes Kessie the first major summer arrival at Camp Nou in 2022.

Barcelona president Joan Laporta confirmed to reporters at the weekend that the club plans to present Kessie on Wednesday, and then Andreas Christensen on the following day.

“We will present Kessie on Wednesday and Christensen on Thursday,” he said.

Christensen, like Kessie, will join Barcelona on a free transfer. The Danish defender’s contract at Chelsea expired last week, making him available as a free agent.

Laporta has also said that Leeds United winger Raphinha wants to join the 26-time Spanish champions this summer despite interest from Premier League clubs Chelsea and Arsenal.