Decision helped free up salary space that allowed the club to register new players
Barcelona have confirmed the departure of Oriol Romeu after the mutual termination of his contract, bringing an end to the veteran midfielder’s second spell at the club.
The player’s exit eases Barcelona’s wage bill as they continue to manage La Liga’s strict financial regulations.
The decision was made during the transfer window and freed up salary space that allowed the club to register new players, including summer arrivals Marcus Rashford and Joan Garcia, in time for the start of the new campaign.
The registration of Rashford and Garcia was completed mere hours ahead of Barcelona’s La Liga opener against Mallorca on 16 August, which they eventually won 3-0.
Romeu came through Barcelona’s academy but left in 2011 to join Chelsea, where he spent four years including loan spells at Valencia and Stuttgart.
He then joined Southampton in 2015 and built the bulk of his career at the club, making 217 appearances across seven seasons.
He rejoined Barcelona from Girona ahead of the 2023-24 season as a stop-gap option in midfield, signing a three-year contract.
However, he struggled for regular minutes under Xavi, majorly due to injury issues, before being loaned back to Girona for the 2024-25 campaign.
