Al-Ittihad reach verbal agreement to sign Barcelona starlet in €4.5 million deal – Romano | OneFootball

Barcelona are all set to say goodbye to talented academy youngster Unai Hernandez, who is on his way to Saudi Arabian club Al-Ittihad.

The 20-year-old attacking midfielder, captain of the Barça Atletic team, had a contract which stood to expire at the end of the season.

Despite the Catalans’ attempt to renew his contract, the La Masia gem has opted to move on right away having been unconvinced about his first-team prospects at the club.

Verbal agreement reached

Providing an update on the transfer, Fabrizio Romano reports that Al-Ittihad have now reached a verbal agreement to sign Unai Hernandez from Barcelona.

As per the report, the Saudi Pro League club will pay a €4.5 million fixed fee for the Spanish starlet while another €500,000 will be paid out as add-ons.

Unai Hernandez on his way out. (Photo by CHARLY TRIBALLEAU/AFP via Getty Images)

Moreover, Barça have secured a future sell-on clause for the youngster, whose transfer will be finalised soon after a few more details are ironed out.

Unai Hernandez joined Barcelona in the summer of 2022, arriving from the academy of Catalan rivals Girona.

The 20-year-old versatile attacking midfielder had become a key part of the Barça Atletic setup over the past year or so, even being named captain for this season.

So far in 2024/25, the Spanish prodigy has scored nine and assisted three goals from 20 appearances for the Catalans’ reserve team. The youngster has trained with the senior team on numerous occasions, but never made his official first-team debut.

Unai will be joined in the Middle East by another Barcelona talent, Pau Prim, who is set to sign for Qatari club Al Sadd, with a verbal agreement in place there as well.