Now, the La Masia graduate completed the process by signing the contract and in doing so, will commit his peak years to his boyhood club. On extending his contract, Roberto said:

The 26-year old further revealed that the team is where they want to be in every competition. Meanwhile, club president Josep Maria Bartomeu highlighted his history-making goal against Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) in the Champions League last season as well as the assist to Lionel Messi at Bernabeu and said:

Thus, the Blaugrana manage to hold on to one of their own after the troubles they faced in doing the same in recent times.

Arthur Melo talks about Barcelona transfer

The Gremio midfielder has added fire to the rumours that his move from the Copa Libertadores winners to Camp Nou is close. He told Sport TV:

Thus, the statements all but confirm that the Blaugrana are set to land another of their key targets as manager Ernesto Valverde looks to replace the ageing Andres Iniesta. Arthur’s style of play is similar to the club legend and at 21 years of age, has his best years ahead of him.

However, no deal can be considered completed until the player poses in club colours, so Barcelona fans will have to halt their celebrations and wait for an official statement.

Chelsea set to battle Barcelona for Stefan de Vrij

The Lazio defender is out of contract in the summer and has recently released a statement on his Instagram account stating that he is set to leave the Italian club in the summer.

Now, the 26-year old is naturally a wanted man in Europe and Italian outlet, La Gazzetta dello Sport states that Barcelona are set to clash with their UEFA Champions League opponents, Chelsea for the centre-back.

A post shared by Stefan de Vrij (@stefandevrij) on Feb 20, 2018 at 8:26am PST

Adding to this battle are Inter Milan, who have reportedly agreed on a five-year deal with the Dutchman worth €4.2 million-a-year plus bonuses, as per the report.

However, if the Blaugrana pursue the player, then it is very likely that De Vrij will be interested, and signing him will allow the Catalan outfit to replace Thomas Vermaelen in the summer.

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