The clause Barca need to get rid of to loan Joao Cancelo

FC Barcelona are making every effort to finalize the squad for the 2023/24 season in the closing stages of the transfer market, securing some of the players that coach Xavi Hernández deems necessary to complete the team. One of these players is the full-back Joao Cancelo, and in order to get the green light from Manchester City for the operation, Barcelona's officials have reportedly had to relinquish one of the contractual conditions, subject to approval by the English club.

According to journalist Fabrizio Romano, Barcelona has agreed to remove the buy-option clause that they initially wanted to include in the loan agreement for the Portuguese international defender. This move aims to gain approval from La Liga's Financial Fair Play. Including such a clause would negatively impact Barcelona's salary balance, as they need to carefully adhere to the parameters set by football's governing bodies.

The original agreement involved a buy-option clause valued at slightly over 30 million euros, which could have become obligatory based on certain performance targets. This clause was intended because Barcelona could not afford a full purchase of the player's rights in this financial year.

With this hurdle cleared, an official announcement of Joao Cancelo's arrival at Barcelona is expected in the coming hours. As per the same information, the agreement will be sealed as a direct loan until June 30, 2024, with these terms serving as reference points for discussions leading into next year, when Barcelona and Manchester City executives might consider a possible permanent transfer.

With the addition of Joao Cancelo, Xavi Hernández could finally have a specialist for the right-back position, a deficit that the team has struggled with over the past seasons. Attempts with players like Sergino Dest or Hector Bellerín didn't yield the desired results. Meanwhile, players like Sergi Roberto, Ronald Araujo, or Jules Koundé have partially filled the role but without providing the qualities of a dedicated full-back.

While Barcelona gains a seasoned defender with experience at top clubs like Inter, Juventus, and Manchester City, the player gets his wish to join Barcelona, a team where he believes he can showcase his best abilities. In the previous season, during his loan spell at Bayern Munich, Joao Cancelo appeared in 21 matches, scoring one goal and providing six assists.