Joao Felix reportedly turned down offers from Manchester United and Liverpool to join Barcelona on loan from Atletico Madrid in the final stages of the summer transfer window.
The 23-year-old completed a loan switch to Camp Nou on transfer deadline day, and he made his debut for the Catalan giants as a substitute against Osasuna in La Liga on Sunday.
There is no obligation to buy the Portugal international, and he extended his contract at Wanda Metropolitano until June 2029 before his loan switch, so he will be returning to Atletico next summer.
Felix's future was the subject of much speculation over the summer, with a number of clubs linked with his services, including teams from the Saudi Pro League.
According to Mundo Deportivo, Man United and Liverpool both made offers for the Portuguese during the summer window, in addition to Aston Villa and Al-Hilal, but he turned down the bids in order to hold out for his dream switch to Barcelona.
© Reuters
The report claims that Felix was not a priority for Barcelona head coach Xavi, but he was still determined to secure a move to the La Liga champions.
Man United are believed to have wanted him on loan, while Liverpool were thought to be willing to offer Atletico the chance to sign Darwin Nunez as part of a swap deal for the attacker.
Felix is also said to have taken a pay cut in order to secure a move to Camp Nou, with the player only expected to receive €400,000 (£342,000) for the season to represent Barcelona.
The forward was not involved for Atletico in the early stages of the campaign due to the speculation surrounding his future at Wanda Metropolitano.
© Reuters
Felix's relationship with Atletico head coach Diego Simeone is believed to have broken down towards the end of last year, which led to him joining Chelsea on loan in January.
The forward scored four goals in 20 appearances for the Blues, who turned down the chance to sign him on a permanent basis during the summer market.
Felix made the move to the Red and Whites from Benfica in the summer of 2019, and he has represented the club on 131 occasions, scoring 34 goals and registering 18 assists.
The forward is currently with the Portugal squad preparing for their upcoming Euro 2024 qualification matches against Slovakia and Luxembourg on September 8 and September 11 respectively.
Barcelona also signed Joao Cancelo on loan from Manchester City in the latter stages of the transfer window, while Inigo Martinez, Ilkay Gundogan and Oriol Romeu arrived earlier in the market.
Matt Law
