The Barcelona midfielder Arthur will join Juventus at the end of the season in a deal worth an initial €72m (£66m), with Miralem Pjanic moving in the opposite direction for a fee valued at €60m (£54.8m) plus add-ons.
Arthur joined the current La Liga champions from Gremio in 2018 and has made 72 appearances for the club, winning the league title and the Spanish Super Cup in his first season. The 23-year-old Brazil international will remain at Camp Nou until the end of this late-running campaign.
A statement on Barcelona’s official website read: “FC Barcelona and Juventus FC have reached an agreement for the transfer of player Arthur Melo. The Italian club will pay €72m, plus €10m in variables. The player will remain at FC Barcelona until the end of official competition in the 2019-20 season.”
The 30-year-old Pjanic’s move to Barcelona was confirmed shortly afterwards. The Bosnian midfielder has signed a contract until the end of the 2023-24 season with a €400m buyout clause.
Barcelona are two points adrift of the leaders Real Madrid with six league games remaining andlooks set to be available for the club when the Champions League resumes in August.
Arthur’s move to Turin comes on the same day that Gianluigi Buffon and Giorgio Chiellini signed new one-year deals to remain at the Allianz Stadium. The two veterans will remain with the Serie A leaders, who are chasing a ninth consecutive scudetto, until the end of the 2020-21 campaign.
Buffon, 42, joined Juventus from Parma in 2001 and has made more than 500 appearances for the Bianconeri, returning to Turin at the start of this season following a one-year spell at Paris Saint-Germain. The 2006 World Cup-winning goalkeeper has played a back-up role to the former Arsenal No 1 Wojciech Szczesny.
Chiellini, the captain who has been at Juventus for 16 years, has also signed an extension. The 35-year-old centre-back joined from Livorno in 2004 and has made 509 appearances for the club in all competitions.
