Cash-strapped Barcelona ‘lose out on MILLIONS with contract blunder’ after Nico Gonzalez’s £50m transfer to Man City
CASH-STRAPPED Barcelona reportedly lost out on MILLIONS from Nico Gonzalez’s £50million Manchester City switch due to a contract blunder.
The Spanish midfielder, 23, completed a stunning deadline day move to the Etihad from Porto.
Before joining the Portuguese side in 2023, Gonzalez came through the ranks at Barcelona’s La Masia academy.
He made 37 appearances before being sold for £7million to Porto as Barca looked to combat their dire financial situation.
However, the Catalans made sure to include a clause that entitled them to 40 per cent of his next fee.
Despite that, ESPN claims Barcelona will now receive just 20 per cent of Gonzalez’s £50m.
That’s because before selling him to City, Porto snapped up half of Barcelona’s clause for only £2.5m.
It means instead of receiving £20m as part of Gonzalez’s move to City, Barca have banked just £10m.
Including Porto’s cheeky clause cash-in, it makes for a grand total of £12.5m — £7.5m less than the Spaniards were expecting to rake in.
Club chiefs are sure to be even more furious as their lack of money saw them potentially miss out on an even greater figure.
Barcelona made sure to also include a buy-back clause, worth £25m, in Gonzalez’s Porto move 18 months ago.
They could have — in theory — re-signed him for that figure before flogging him to City for £50m — making for a cool £25m profit.
But Porto’s earlier decision to pay £2.5m for Gonzalez’s sell-on clause saw that option also become invalid.
After joining City, the playmaker said: “This is the perfect opportunity for me at this stage of my career. I am 23 and I want to test myself in England. There’s no better club than Manchester City for me to do that.
“Look at the squad they have here … it’s unbelievable, full of world‑class players. There isn’t a footballer in the world who would not want to be part of this setup.
“I know the reputation Pep has and I cannot wait to work with him. In fact, I am honoured he wants me to play in his team. I am truly excited. I just want to meet my teammates, and the staff here and then I want to play in front of the City fans.”
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