The talented product of the famous La Masia academy has embarked on a new adventure in Italy, with a fellow Spanish youngster also along for the ride.
Roma have announced the signing of Carles Perez from Barcelona, with the winger initially arriving on a €1 million loan deal and the Italian side set to pay the player’s wages for the rest of the 2019-20 season.
The Serie A outfit are then obliged to fork out €11m (£9m/$12m) for the 21-year-old when the loan period ends in June – based on the achievement of certain sporting targets – while the deal also includes additional performance-related clauses, worth up to a maximum of €4.5m.
If and when the deal is made permanent, Perez will be tied to the club until the summer of 2024. Barca, meanwhile, will retain the option of first refusal ahead of any future sale.
“I know I am leaving a great club like Barcelona, but I’m joining another great club in Rome,” Perez said, via Roma’s official website.
“I’m really happy and I can’t wait to start training alongside my new team-mates.”
Chief executive Guido Fienga added: “We are hugely satisfied with Carles’ arrival in Rome. Carles learned his trade in one of the best youth academies in Europe, and has been playing for a club with so much talent at its disposal.
“We are all hopeful that he can immediately have a significant role to play within our squad.”
Perez, who will wear number 31 at Stadio Olimpico, was not the only arrival to be announced on Thursday, with the Giallorossi also tying up a €4m deal for Elche midfielder Gonzalo Villar, the 21-year-old also penning a deal until the summer of 2024.
“I’m joining a great club and I couldn’t be happier,” Villar said. “It’s a great challenge for me, I can’t wait to show what I am capable of.”
Fienga said of Roma’s new number 14: “We are really pleased to be able to bring Gonzalo to Trigoria.
“Gonzalo is exactly the sort of central midfielder we have been looking to add to our squad: he’s young, he’s talented and has great ambition to succeed.”
Roma, who sit fourth in Serie A, travel to face Sassuolo on Saturday, although the clash at Stadio Citta del Tricolore may come too quickly for the club’s new signings.
