By Mark Finlay
Manchester United target Thiago Alcantara of Barcelona has agreed to join the German giants for a fee of around £21.6 million on a four year deal to be penned once the Barcelona midfielder passes a medical. The Spanish midfielder was according to bookmakers such as sports.bwin.com/en/football odds on to join United until the deal was hijacked by Bayern.
It was assumed by everyone that the 22-year-old was on his way to Old Trafford where he would team up with fellow U-21 international David De Gea.
The former Barcelona boss Pep Guardiola decided to make fellow Spaniard Alcantara one of his priorities as the Germans try to retain the Championship status in Guardiola’s first season at the Allianz Arena.
Along with the transfer comes the commitment to hold a friendly game between the two football powerhouses some time before 2017.
A short statement from the Catalans read: “FC Barcelona and FC Bayern Munich have reached an agreement over the transfer of the player Thiago Alcantara to the German club for a total of 25 million (euros).
“This agreement also includes holding a friendly match between the two teams, which will be played in the next four years.”
Having now lost out in their attempt to sign Thiago United have turned their attention to another Barca player Cesc Fabregas in the hope that the promise of a first team start each week will tempt the 26-year-old to leave the Nou Camp for Old Trafford with several bookmakers offering odds of 1/5 that Fabregas will still be a Barcelona player come the end of the summer.
