Arda Turan completed his £24 million move to FC Barcelona from Atletico Madrid as confirmed by the La Liga champions on their official website but it appears that there could still be a twist in the transfer saga.
Barcelona presidential candidate Benedito has stated that he does not agree with the signing and that he could end up sending Turan back if elected.
Benedict would be able to send Turan back to Atleti if elected due to a clause in the transfer which allows Barcelona to send the Turkish international back to Atleti for a fee.
The presidential hopeful told El Mundo Deportivo: “I already told [president of the management committee] Ramon Adell on Saturday that it goes against the spirit and against the electoral process that the management takes this type of financial decision considering that, in a few days’ time, we will have a new president, who will have full legitimacy.”
“We don’t agree with Arda’s signing and would rather have another player with a different profile.”
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Fellow Barcelona presidential candidate Josep Maria Bartomeu – who is up for reelection – sparked off speculation that head coach Luis Enrique wanted Turan and that this was a special case.
“He’s [Arda Turan] a good player, with great quality and perfectly matches what Luis Enrique is wanting this coming season, which is why I, as a pre-candidate, urge the interim committee to take the necessary steps to sign the player. When all parties are in agreement, and above all the manager, that the player is the one we need, the thing to do is to bring him in under the best conditions possible,” he was quoted as saying by Marca.
Barcelona are currently preparing for new presidential elections on 18 July. Bartomeu, Joan Laporta, Toni Freixa, Agusti Benedito and Joan Batiste are the candidates hoping to take charge at the club.
Turan could end up being returned to Atleti for an effective cost of 3.4 million euros if Bartomeu loses the election.
