Brazil striker Neymar signed a five-year-contract on today after concluding his medicals with FC Barcelona.
Barca beat arch-rivals Real Madrid to the highly-rated 21-year-old’s signature last weekend after almost three years of interest from Europe’s top clubs.
Barcelona said the deal was sealed at 57 million euros (74.6 million US dollars).
The young attacker will have to work hard to meet the high expectations of Barcelona fans who packed the Camp Nou to welcome their new star signed from Brazilian team Santos.
Clad in Barca’s jersey, Neymar stepped into the impressive stadium for the first time in front of more than 50,000 cheering fans that took the opportunity to glimpse the player that is expected to create a dangerous partnership with Lionel Messi.
Although the Brazilian starlet has struggled against top sides, Barcelona fans hope Neymar could boost the team’s attacking power.
Neymar was with the Brazil squad preparing for the Confederations Cup, but the federation’s technical co-ordinator Carlos Alberto Parreira said that they had allowed the forward to travel to Barcelona to complete his move. He also played for Brazil against England on Sunday (June 2) to officially reopen the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro. The friendly match ended 2-2.
Brazil host the Confederations Cup, the eight-nation warm up event for next year’s World Cup finals, from June 15 to 30.