After months of negotiations, it looks like Juventus and Barcelona are finally close to finalizing the player exchange involving Arthur Melo and Miralem Pjanic. According to multiple reports, Juventus reached a deal with Barca to acquire Melo on Tuesday for around $90 million, while Pjanic should head in the opposite direction in a separate deal.
Reportedly, all that is left is for two sides to determine the difference in value between the two players. While Juve insists that Pjanic should be valued at close to $80 million, Barca figures it should pay even less for the Bosnian midfielder. Teams are expected to iron out these details in the upcoming days and make the swap official.
The clubs are handling the deal as two separate transactions for financial reasons. It will help them balance their books while also being able to meet the conditions of UEFA’s Financial Fair Play Regulations.
Juventus and Barcelona have been discussing the exchange for some time but faced some difficulties with pulling it off as Arthur Melo was reluctant to move to Italy. Brazilian wanted to remain in Spain and thought that he could become a key player for the team in the future. Pjanic reportedly didn’t have any issues with heading to Camp Nou and immediately agreed to terms with Barca.
After some consideration in recent weeks, however, Melo started warming up towards the idea of playing for Juventus. Reportedly, the 23-year-old had a change of hearts thanks to Juve’s $6 million annual salary, which is significantly more than the money he receives in Barcelona.
Melo joined Barca in 2018 from Gremio. He played 27 games with the club this season, scoring four goals and adding four assists.
Pjanic, on the other hand, has been with Juventus since 2016. The 30-year-old Bosnian made 35 appearances for Juve in all competitions so far in 2019/20.
