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Gerard Deulofeu: Barcelona buy back winger from Everton

Last updated on .From the section European Footballcomments73

Gerard Deulofeu
Gerard Deulofeu was a product of the Barcelona academy, joining the club at the age of nine

Barcelona have re-signed winger Gerard Deulofeu from Everton after exercising a buy-back clause believed to be worth 12m euros (£10.6m).

Deulofeu originally went on loan to Everton in 2013-14 then signed in a £4.3m permanent deal in 2015.

The 23-year-old made 13 appearances for Everton last season before joining AC Milan on loan in January.

The Spaniard, who came through the youth academy at the Nou Camp, has signed a two-year deal.

After a good first season on Merseyside, Deulofeu fell out of favour and manager Ronald Koeman allowed him to spend the second half of the last campaign in Italy.

He started 36 games for Everton, with a further 39 from the bench, scoring eight goals. His contract had been due to run until June 2018.

Deulofeu said: "I am very happy to have returned home and cannot wait to start this project. I have always wanted to be here.

"I have had to work away from Barca, because it is not easy to get into the first team, but I have come here with a lot of desire.

"I have changed a lot, I have had different experiences and I think I have improved as a person and a player. I am a different player and I am going to try and help the team.

"I know that competition is high, but I will work hard every day and I am going to try and learn from the best to help the team to win titles."

Analysis

Phil McNulty, BBC Sport's chief football writer

Deulofeu's departure from Everton is no surprise as he was clearly not part of Ronald Koeman's plans. The only thing that might seem surprising is that he returns to Barcelona.

He had been sent out on loan by Barcelona to Everton and Sevilla with mixed results before he made a permanent move to Goodison Park in June 2015.

Deulofeu was regarded as talented but wildly inconsistent, a status he has done little to alter in recent times, including during a loan spell at AC Milan last season.

Barcelona, however, clearly believe the raw materials are there - which they undoubtedly are - and that new coach Ernesto Valverde can fashion the finished product.

However Deulofeu faces a challenge to secure regular game time - given Barcelona's attacking riches include Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar - at what is the crucial phase of his career.

He is a player who can excite and exasperate in equal measure. Deulofeu must now alter that balance in his and Barcelona's favour.

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73 comments

  • Comment posted by User0593293414, at 16:00 30 Jun 2017

    You'd think it'd be a no brainer: if you've got a promising young player and you're not sure they're going to make it so you're letting them go, you'd make sure you put a buy-back clause in just in case they come good.

    Expecting Chelsea to exercise theirs on De Bruyne and Lukaku any day now...

    Oh wait.

  • Comment posted by User0813316933, at 16:06 30 Jun 2017

    Just due to inflation of player prices since Sky deal.

    The player hasn't improved, but he is now worth more than £10m at these inflated prices. So get him back cheap and resell him for double. Barce don't actually want him to play for them. Just want to turn a quick profit.

  • Comment posted by D1710792489982, at 19:06 30 Jun 2017

    We spend millions, have a new ground coming, a decent manger and players not good enough for us who we loan out now get signed by Barcelona. Don't think I can keep up with all of this..

    Think I'm going to wake up and Moyes will still be trying to sign James McFadden from the mighty Motherwelll........on loan of course.

  • Comment posted by bluemoon_noisy, at 16:18 30 Jun 2017

    I suspect this is an opportunity for Barcelona to buy then sell on at a profit

  • Comment posted by Jimbobalob, at 16:48 30 Jun 2017

    A few years ago with Geri, Barkley and Lukaku I thought Everton were going to start going places. They're all likely to leave and I'm still optimistic, it's a funny old game.

  • Comment posted by User0699098796, at 16:30 30 Jun 2017

    @15 - A few of your comments now have stated that you've never heard of well-known footballers. Maybe you shouldn't be reading and commenting on football articles when you haven't the foggiest what it's about.

  • Comment posted by Bubba, at 15:55 30 Jun 2017

    @Ook the Librarian - Not sure if you're joking but buy-back clauses usually state the parent club (Barca) can rebuy the player at certain points (end of season, winter transfer window etc...) regardless of what the new club wants (in this case Everton).

    He's a great player but I don't see quite how he fits into the current Everton squad (hence his loan). Good luck to him.

  • Comment posted by Rainfordian, at 21:14 30 Jun 2017

    "I suspect this is an opportunity for Barcelona to buy then sell on at a profit"

    I suspect you're right. Barca will give him a £20 haircut and sell him to Liverpool for £45m in 2018.

  • Comment posted by Yasir, at 16:14 30 Jun 2017

    Decent player but never in a million years will he get into the Barca side. He'll be sold for 20-25mil either this summer or next.

    I know players are commodities but its getting a bit out of hand now..

  • Comment posted by madmarvel, at 15:52 30 Jun 2017

    Doubled our money back, good business, felt he deserved more game time with us, but couldn't find his consistency, good luck Geri

  • Comment posted by No1, at 19:33 30 Jun 2017

    43. "everton wasting money"?
    You havin a laff? Bout time we got in the candy shop.

  • Comment posted by Tarkowski s Ears, at 22:44 30 Jun 2017

    No player can develop consistency when they're in and out of the team and on and off the subs bench.

    Look at Man U who have completely mismanaged and wasted Falcao, Di Maria, De Pays, Schneiderlin and Schweinsteiger, and now the French Wonderkid Martial looks to be on his way thanks to grotesquely incompetent mismanagement.

    It's the managers who are to blame. Overpaid cretins.

  • Comment posted by La Carihuela, at 17:04 30 Jun 2017

    Wasted talent at Everton, sorry to see him go.Never had a run in the team, when he did, defenders couldn't handle him.He's got talent although think he would better off at Everton apart from Lookman in front of him in the pecking order.
    Good luck to the lad
    Don't understand some managers not giving players a chance.

  • Comment posted by Riquelme, at 16:29 30 Jun 2017

    While he's no Messi, he does have something different about him, and can play on either flank or in the hole. 10 mill for an option and someone already familiar with the Barca setup is not bad value.. his issue at Everton is his off the ball work rate.. Or lack of. They cannot afford that imbalance in the PL. But this has never really been a problem for Barca.

  • Comment posted by Boom, at 16:16 30 Jun 2017

    10/ at least it's about something that's happened unlike that other ridiculous one about something about a player Liverpool may or may not sign, quote free and mind numbingly tedious.

  • Comment posted by DavidB1985, at 17:32 30 Jun 2017

    @32 That's exactly what I was thinking. There's no way he's getting into this Barca team so they'll probably just sell him onto Milan for about twice what they've paid for him.

  • Comment posted by supertramp, at 16:02 30 Jun 2017

    Disappointing that he wasn't given more of a chance last year, but hopefully he'll get game time at Barca, don't see how though with the competition in midfield! Good luck to him though

  • Comment posted by NoCLsince2008noPL2013hahah, at 15:48 30 Jun 2017

    Nice move - cheap as chips.

  • Comment posted by The_Yorkshire_Toffee, at 15:54 30 Jun 2017

    Why? He can't even get a game for us!

    Or is it that Barca will sell on to another team for more than the sell on clause?

  • Comment posted by sandroJoe, at 15:51 30 Jun 2017

    have fun warming the bench!

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