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Portugal national team midfielder Deco has agreed to play for the club next season. Today, the Spanish club officially announced the agreement with the player, who will sign a four-year contract after passing a medical examination tomorrow.
"Deco, a former member of FC Porto, will undergo a medical examination on Tuesday before joining the Barcelona team. If everything goes well, Deco will sign a four-year contract and will become the fourth Barcelona signing after Julliano Belleti, Henrik Larsson, and Ludovic Giuly," said the official statement from the Catalan club.
The 26-year-old Brazilian-born Deco helped Porto win the Champions League last season and was one of the main players in the Portuguese national team that reached the Euro 2004 final. This made him one of the most desired players, and clubs like Real Madrid and Chelsea started showing interest.
Initially, it seemed that Deco would follow in the footsteps of his coach Jose Mourinho to Chelsea in London. However, after long negotiations, Chelsea withdrew from the competition for the player, and then Barcelona intervened and quickly arranged the deal - Porto should receive 12 million euros and Portuguese player Ricardo Quaresma for Deco.
Deco passed his medical examination easily and was happy to join his new club: "I would like to send a message to Barcelona fans: Trust me - I came here to win. Barcelona has always been my dream, it's what I always wanted. I want to win many titles here."
