Furious Barcelona — Gordon’s plane is landing, while the Catalan club is already chasing Alvarez
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Reading Time: 4min | Thu. 28.05.26. | 16:04
Barcelona quickly completed the signing of the Englishman, while the phenomenal Argentine is already emerging as the club’s next reinforcement
Barcelona moved swiftly — in a way we’re not exactly used to seeing from them — with no lengthy negotiations and plenty of efficiency, as they wrapped up the signing of Anthony Gordon.
The Englishman, who had been viewed for weeks as Bayern Munich’s primary transfer target, reached an agreement with the Spanish champions yesterday after the Bavarians refused to match Deco’s offer.
Newcastle reportedly received proposals from both Barca and Bayern on the same day, but with the Germans unwilling to go beyond €70 million, the Catalans found the deal significantly easier to complete.
Mundo Deportivo confirmed yesterday’s reports regarding the transfer fee — the fixed amount will stand at €70 million, while Newcastle could earn an additional €10 million through difficult performance-related bonuses. For those clauses to be activated, Gordon would need to win both La Liga and the Champions League with his new club while also playing a major role in those successes.
“Barcelona have finalized the signing of Anthony Gordon, their first addition for the 2026/27 season,” Mundo Deportivo wrote. “He will sign a five-year contract after completing his medical examinations. The England international primarily plays on the wings, but he is also comfortable operating as a central striker. Barca beat Bayern and Liverpool in the race for Gordon, with the Reds making a late push by trying to use the fact that the player was born in the city and that his family comes from there.”
According to the latest reports, Gordon booked a private jet last night scheduled to depart at 3:20 PM, meaning he is expected to arrive in Barcelona later today. All medical tests should be completed by tomorrow evening.
The Magpies, naturally, are wasting no time searching for a replacement. Reports suggest they have already identified Abdel Ezzalzouli from Betis as Gordon’s successor and are prepared to trigger his €60 million release clause.
Anthony Gordon’s arrival almost certainly means Barcelona will not activate the buy option for Marcus Rashford from Manchester United. Spanish media claim the main reason is that signing the Newcastle attacker would place less strain on the club’s Financial Fair Play limits.
Specifically, the calculation is as follows: the €30 million fee required to purchase Rashford would result in €10 million in amortization over a three-year contract. Assuming he maintained his current salary — around €14 million gross per season — Rashford would occupy roughly €24 million annually within Barça’s FFP structure.
On the other hand, Gordon’s fixed transfer fee would mean €14 million in annual amortization spread across five years, and with reports suggesting a gross salary of €11 million per season, the total yearly FFP cost would come to €25 million — just €1 million more. And it should not be forgotten that Gordon is nearly three years younger.
Interestingly, Barcelona do not intend to stop with Gordon. In fact, Mundo Deportivo’s headline story this morning claims that Deco and his staff are doing everything possible to secure a new striker before the start of the World Cup. The target has long been known — Julian Alvarez — but the new development is that the Catalans have now entered concrete and decisive negotiations.
The newspaper reveals that Deco met yesterday with Fernando Hidalgo, Alvarez’s agent, while representatives from the Niagara agency — Juanma Lopez and Andy Bara — also attended the meeting and are expected to play key roles in the negotiations.
Juanma Lopez has excellent connections within Atletico Madrid, where he spent ten years as a player, and he already helped bring Joan Garcia from Espanyol to Camp Nou. Bara, meanwhile, represents Dani Olmo and is highly regarded inside Barcelona.
“Through his agent Hidalgo, Julian informed Atletico that he is happy at the club, but that he would be very interested if the possibility of joining Barcelona emerged. Neither Barca nor Atletico want the potential transfer to become a drawn-out summer saga. They are eager to conclude the deal as quickly as possible,” Mundo wrote.
The same source adds that the transfer fee would likely exceed €100 million.
If you’re wondering where Barcelona are finding the money, it’s worth remembering that this summer they are removing by far their highest-paid player from the wage bill — Robert Lewandowski, whose earnings with bonuses comfortably exceeded €20 million per year.