Memphis Depay is on the verge of joining Barcelona according to Ronald Koeman in comments carried by Football Italia. The forward, currently away with the Netherlands at Euro 2020, is a free agent after leaving Lyon following the expiration of his contract.
Koeman coached Memphis with the Netherlands, and has been keen to bring him to Camp Nou for some time. Barcelona’s financial situation make that difficult, however, and while negotiations dragged on Juventus emerged as a rival for his signature.
“It’s not signed yet, but it’s almost there,” Koeman said. “I wanted to sign him in January, but if it happens now, that’s great. We know what we can do together.” The move had also been on hold given the doubts over Koeman’s continuity at Barcelona, a matter that’s resolved, for the time being at least.
Memphis has scored 26 goals in 65 appearances for the Oranje, and will be a key figure as they look to do damage at Euro 2020 this summer. He began his career with PSV Eindhoven in his native land before an unsuccessful stint at Manchester United; from there, in 2017, he went to France with Lyon, scoring 76 goals and contributing 55 assists in 178 games with the club.
