Emerson has been one of the outstanding players in La Liga this season according to Marca, an essential part of Real Betis’ right side. He’s provided three assists and a goal in his last five games. Emerson joined Betis two years ago and has already played 67 games with the club, and is now adapted to Spanish football.
That was Barcelona’s ambition when they signed him in January of 2019 in conjunction with Betis, from Atletico Mineiro. He cost €12m in total, with both clubs paying €6m each. Their agreement indicated that Emerson would play for Betis until June 2021 and then Barcelona would bring him to Catalonia by paying that €6m Betis paid plus an additional fee of €3m more.
Barcelona were in a very different economic situation back in 2019 to what they are now, and there’s also been significant change in the offices at Camp Nou. Pep Segura, the man who sanctioned the deal, is gone, with Mateu Alemany expected to be the man that takes his position. He’ll need to discuss with the relevant powers what to do with the Brazilian.
Barcelona can’t sell Emerson until the summer of 2022, at which point the fee would be split 50/50 between themselves and Betis. Within this agreement, there’s also the chance that Betis could take over his economic rights completely, if Barcelona fail to trigger their option. Then the roles would be reversed. From a sporting perspective, this would be a no-brainer for Betis, but their financial reality is also somewhat complicated.
