Eric García has agreed personal terms with Barcelona over a five-year contract but it remains to be seen whether he will leave Manchester City in January after rejecting their offer of a new deal.
The 19-year-old defender, who moved to England from Barça in 2017, surprised City last summer when he refused a contract extension, with City demanding a fee of £20m plus £10m in add-ons from his former club to purchase him.
But with less than six months of García’s contract remaining, he is free to negotiate with overseas clubs and has reached an agreement to return to Catalonia at the end of the season.
Barcelona could still attempt to bring forward the transfer but will need to agree a fee with City to sign him in January. García has played just 200 minutes in the Premier League so far this term despite featuring regularly at the end of last season and it is understood Pep Guardiola was hoping the Spain international may have a change of heart.
Although his move remains contingent on the election of a new Barcelona president, García is believed to be keen to return to the club that he first joined as a junior in 2008.
“He [García] told us that he doesn’t want to extend his contract with Manchester City, so he has one more year,” Guardiola said in August. “We wanted it but he doesn’t want to extend. I imagine he wants to play in another place.”
