Barcelona have reached an agreement to sign Dutch forward Memphis Depay following weeks of negotiations with Lyon, Gianluca di Marzio has revealed.
Earlier last month, Depay was identified as the ideal replacement for out-of-favour Luis Suarez, but the Blaugrana could not finalise a suitable deal with Les Gones.
Suarez recently parted ways with the Catalan giants to make the switch to Atletico Madrid and it now appears that the club have finally struck an agreement to bring Depay to the Camp Nou.
The Netherlands international started his career as a regular on the left wing, but over the past couple of years, he has transformed into a genuine striker.
Ronald Koeman played a key role in Depay’s switch to the centre-forward position when he was the head coach of the Dutch national team and the duo are set to be reunited.
Depay initially built his reputation with PSV in the Eredivisie where he bagged 50 goals and 29 assists from 124 appearances and that earned him the high-profile move to Manchester United in the summer of 2015.
However, he struggled to make a noticeable mark with the Red Devils and managed only seven goals and six assists from 53 outings before he made the switch to Les Gones on a permanent deal in January 2017.
The 26-year-old has since revived his career with an impressive tally of 58 goals and 43 assists from 144 appearances and he now has the opportunity to make his mark with the Blaugrana.
Depay is likely to take up the striker’s position which has been left vacant by Suarez. He is much more experienced from his time at Old Trafford and will be hoping to cement a regular starting berth with consistent displays.
Stats from Transfermarkt.com