FC Barcelona have decided to exercise their right to bring back Emerson Royal from July 1, following two seasons on loan at Real Betis.
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Spanish giants FC Barcelona have decided to exercise their right to bring back Emerson Royal from July 1, following two seasons on loan at Real Betis Balompie. The Andalusian club witnessed Emerson make 79 appearances in two and a half seasons. He helped the team managed by Manuel Pellegrini record a sixth-place finish in La Liga last season. The defender’s performances further helped Real Betis seal a spot in the Europa League for next season. The Brazilian played a total of 3,186 minutes for Betis last season, more than any other player at the club.
Many footballers have played for both the Blaugranas and the Andalusians. Over the last two seasons, only Jordi Alba, Sevilla’s Jesus Navas and Atletico Madrid’s Kieran Trippier have provided more assists than Emerson’s 10 as a defender.
The defender will bring pace along with an attacking dimension to the right wing at Barcelona. He scored five goals and created 10 assists with Betis, which is commendable to say the least. Emerson has played at Betis since a three-way agreement was reached involving Atletico Mineiro in January 2019.
Emerson Aparecido Leite de Souza Junior, better known as Emerson Royal will be seen representing Brazil in the upcoming Copa America. He was born in Sao Paulo in Brazil on 14 January 1999.
Emerson has been a part of the Brazilian national side since the U-20 level. He made his debut for the national team in November 2019 in a friendly against South Korea.
Emerson is the second signing in quick succession after Eric Garcia. FC Barcelona recently reached an agreement for Garcia to join the club from July 1, following the conclusion of his contract with Manchester City. The player will sign a contract until the end of the 2025/26 season. His buyout clause is set at 400 million euros.
The defender joined the Barca Academy in 2008 and continued his development at La Masia until 2017 when he left for Manchester City. He spent four seasons in England featuring at U-19, U-23 level and for the first team.
Garcia was the captain at every level during his time at La Masia. The youngster grew up with Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano as his role models.
