Barcelona sign Mascherano, poised to sell Ibrahimovic
By DPA, IANSFriday, August 27, 2010
MADRID - Spanish football champions Barcelona announced Friday that they had reached an agreement with Liverpool “for the transfer of Javier Mascherano.”
Mascherano, 26, will fly into the Catalan capital this weekend to undergo medical checks and sign a four-year contract with Barca.
According to Spanish and English media reports, Barca will pay Liverpool around 22 million euros ($27.96 million) plus add-ons for the Argentina captain.
Barca have been looking for a defensive midfielder since selling Yaya Toure to Manchester City in July.
Mascherano is Barca’s third summer signing, following forward David Villa from Valencia and full-back Adriano from Sevilla.
In other Barca news, the Catalans are poised to sell striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic to AC Milan, for around 40 million euros. The details of the deal are expected to be finalized.
Ibrahimovic, 28, appeared to realise last week that coach Pep Guardiola does not want him in his squad, despite his 21 goals last season.
The Swedish striker and his agent, Mino Raiola, have criticised Guardiola fiercely this week.
