Joao Cancelo has arrived in Barcelona to complete his permanent return to FC Barcelona. The 32-year-old Portugal international returns to the Catalan club for a third spell as a free agent after rescinding his contract with Al-Hilal.
As upday.com reported, Cancelo told Barcelona sporting director Deco that he was prepared to spend an entire season without playing rather than miss out on the move. He said he has always identified with the club.
Speaking to reporters at El Prat airport, Cancelo said that leaving the Saudi club had been more complicated than he expected, but that he was now where he wanted to be. He also said Barcelona were building a strong squad.
The financial details of the move are notable. Al-Hilal had initially valued Cancelo at around €10 million, but ultimately released him without a fee after he pressed to leave. Cancelo trained separately from the first-team group for a week under Simone Inzaghi and accepted a reduction in his salary to facilitate the transfer.
This will be Cancelo’s third spell in Catalonia. He first joined Barcelona on loan from Manchester City for the 2023-24 season under Xavi Hernandez, before returning on loan from Al-Hilal from January 2026 under Hansi Flick. During his latest loan spell, he became the first-choice left-back ahead of Alejandro Balde. According to various reports, Cancelo is set to sign a three-year contract running until June 2029. Flick would regain a full-back capable of playing on either flank, with Cancelo having performed particularly well on the left.
The move is Barcelona’s fourth signing of the summer, following the arrivals of Karim Adeyemi, Anthony Gordon and Jesse Bisiwu. The club is also working on a deal for Manchester City’s Rodri Hernandez, with various reports saying its latest offer is worth around €70 million. Athletic Club defender Aymeric Laporte has added to speculation around Barcelona’s transfer activity by liking a related social-media post, although Athletic maintain that he remains under contract until June 2028.
Cancelo’s return would end a process that began with two loan spells and now moves toward a permanent stay at Barcelona.
