Arthur Melo and Barcelona are negotiating the midfielder’s early exit from the club after a lack of minutes since confirming his transfer to Juventus, according to ESPN sources.
Arthur and Barca’s relationship has tightened in recent weeks to the point that he no longer wants to be involved in the club’s Champions League campaign, which resumes against Napoli on 8 August.
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Barca players underwent the last coronavirus test round on Monday before Tuesday’s return to training to plan the last return game of the last race (they drew 1-1 in Italy). However, Arthur didn’t show up and sources said he doesn’t want to get involved in the preparations and would prefer his stay at the Camp Nou to end immediately.
Arthur, 23, hasn’t appeared in any of Barca’s last six games since the Juve deal, which is worth 82 million euros, was announced on June 30th.
At the time, Barca declared that Arthur would remain available for selection for the rest of the season, as well as Miralem Pjanic for Juventus, which moves in the opposite direction for 60 million euros.
However, the Brazilian international has become frustrated with his lack of playing time since the deal was confirmed. He was not among the substitutes of the last league game against Alaves, despite Barca having only three offside changes.
Coach Quique Setien said that Arthur claimed to have an ankle problem, but the Catalan club has not released a statement regarding any injury, which is customary when players miss games with fitness problems.
Setien had previously said that Arthur would only play for the club again if it was absolutely necessary.
This could have been the case against Napoli, with midfielders Sergio Busquets and Arturo Vidal both suspended, but the emergence of Riqui Puig has further pushed Arthur down, making it very unlikely that he will show up again before moving to Italy.
Given the situation, an injured Arthur wants to end his Barca career now. The club is discussing how to handle the situation. They could still take action against him for breach of contract if an amicable solution is not reached and he returns to training this week.
Arthur joined Barca da Gremio for an initial of € 30 million in 2018 and was soon compared to club legend Xavi Hernandez. However, injuries and inconsistent form have seen him lose his place on the team sometime this season.
As the club tried to earn money to meet financial deadlines by June 30th, they were ready to listen to offers for the midfielder and eventually signed an agreement with Juve in May.
Initially, Arthur insisted that he wanted to stay in Barca, but eventually changed his mind, with sources telling ESPN that Brazilian teammate Daniel Alves was among those who convinced him to move to Turin.
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