"We already have him back. We know you wanted to", said the president Joan Laporta emotionally at the picturesque presentation of Oriol Romeu, the fourth signing of the season after Iñigo Martínez, Gündogan and Vítor Roque who will arrive in 2024. The coming-out of the man from Ulldecona, a midfielder trained in the lower categories of FC Barcelona who left in 2011 due to the prevailing growth and reliability of Sergio Busquets, was held very far from La Masia . Under the cauldron of the Olympic Memorial Coliseum in Los Angeles.
After the departure of Barcelona's first captain, now at Inter Miami, reinforcing the team with a defensive pivot was Xavi Hernández's number one priority in this summer market. Faced with the economic impossibility of being able to sign midfielders with high exit clauses or impossible to negotiate, such as Zubimendi, Kimmich or Brozovic, Xavi requested the arrival of Oriol Romeu, who signs for three seasons and with a clause of 400 million euros.
"We saw many options but when Oriol's name was put on the table there was no doubt. He is the ideal football profile. He has the integrated style and we are satisfied from a technical point of view. We also value his leadership and his personality, we value this very much", explained the football director Mateu Alemany, who detailed the financial details of the operation. "The clause - of 3.4 million - was established by the League because it was not fully defined, there were many variables. I do want to emphasize that FC Barcelona paid it in full," he added. However, from Girona they assure that the club has entered around 4 million and that the remaining amount is paid by the player himself, renouncing part of his new contract with Barça.
Especially excited was Rafa Yuste, sports vice president who in Laporta's first term was responsible for La Masia and saw Romeu grow. "We all believe in the family. And the culé family is proud that you are back in your home. Welcome back. You have made many sacrifices to be here," he added.
It was Oriol Romeu's turn who, with an emotional but convincing tone, expressed his feelings on being able to return to what was his home. "I have slept little and I have been aware of whether it was closed or not," he confessed. "But in the end everything has ended well and now I want to quickly adapt to everything. The emotions are very beautiful after going around a lot. Being able to return home to continue growing is an immense joy," said Romeu.
One of the elements that worried the player the most was leaving Girona well. "At first they didn't want to let me out but they always understood. I will always give them my support and I will always be very grateful for everything," he explained. And it is that the signing of Ulldecona has generated discomfort in Girona. Romeu, 31, a footballer trained in the lower categories of FC Barcelona, was a benchmark for the fans and a key piece in the schemes of Míchel's team, which he joined a year ago from English Middlesbrough. Even the city's mayor, Lluc Salellas, who criticized the Barça club's movement on social networks: "Barça, in short, let it do, it will get smaller." "We don't understand it. Romeu just wanted to go home," added institutional vice president Elena Fort.
Beyond the controversy, Oriol Romeu wants to talk about the field. And he presented his credentials. "I want to be a positional pivot that balances the team and that the players feel good and safe with me. One of my strengths is physicality and I have to improve my control and throwing the ball out, I'm sure that with Xavi I'll take a step forward. I'm clear that the opportunity to return to Barça comes at the best moment of my professional career," he said.
To close his arrival, the voice of Xavi Hernández was essential. "He called me during my holidays and told me that he wanted me to come. I was very excited. I really wanted to. That Xavi thinks of you, you can't ask for much more. Xavi looks for different systems depending on the opponent and the game. We will have to interpret the opponent's style well and I feel qualified to do so".
The moment Romeu left, he always thought of coming back. "I'm a very optimistic guy. I always thought that the best was yet to come. I remember that two or three years ago I was feeling well and I thought I needed to go one step further. In this sense, Girona helped me. I wanted to play for a club with a similar style. I worked with the illusion of being able to return to a top-level team. And if it's Barça, I don't even explain it to you. The challenge is magnificent and I did see myself as capable," the footballer concluded.
