The soap opera is over: Boca Juniors’ wonderkid Valentín ‘Colo’ Barco’s move to Premier League club Brighton & Hove Albion is complete.
The Xeneize tried repeatedly to extend the exciting youngster’s contact, but like so many of Argentina's leading lights, the left-footer has chosen a future overseas.
Barco, 19, will move to England in a deal worth close to US$10 million – the release clause set in his contract – and surprisingly, no sell-on fee.
The reason is financial. Boca executives prefer to receive the whole fee upfront. If a deal goes through via the termination of the player’s contract, more goes directly into the club’s coffers and less tax will be deducted, significantly lower than the normal 25.5 percent that is levied by the sport’s governing body in Argentina and the national government on international transfers.
Nevertheless, Barco’s decision to move is a disappointment for Boca President Juan Román Riquelme, who recently won club elections and secured a fresh four-year term at the helm.
Talks to renegotiate and extend Barco’s contract were rumoured at the beginning of 2023, but the player wanted to keep his options open. Brighton initially tried to sign him in the middle of that year but the player wanted to play out the Copa Libertadores campaign with Boca, who eventually lost to Brazil's Fluminese in the final.
Club executives were informed that the player did not want to extend and today, with just six months left to run on his current deal, they have been forced to cash in on another talent. The player has long made it clear that he sees his future in Europe and has signed a five-year deal with Brighton, running until December 2029.
According to reports in several Argentine media outlets, Brighton made at least two offers for the player, both will sell-on percentages included. In the first, worth some US$9 million, they offered to pay 50 percent of the total free upfront and the rest in two years’ time. The second attempt to secure the player offered a little over US$10 million, but the payments would still be spread.
After both offers were rejected, the player’s representatives met with officials from the English Premier League side and both parties agreed to trigger the clause and terminate his contract. US$10 million has been paid upfront and Barco is effectively no longer a Boca player.
The Veinticinco de Mayo-born star, who can play all along the left-hand side of the field and has even been moved inside at times, will join up with Brighton’s squad after a spell away on international duty with Argentina Under-23 team comes to an end.
‘Colo’ has made just 35 senior appearances for Boca and scored one goal. He is the latest off the Argentine conveyor belt of talent that leads to Europe.
Exciting River Plate youngster Claudio Echeverri is likely to be the next to follow, with Manchester City close to announcing a deal with the Buenos Aires side.
– TIMES/PERFIL
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