The Spanish League club announced on Tuesday that Antoni Griezmann has returned to Atletico Madrid from Barcelona for a season on loan.
Multiple sources have revealed to the media that the loan contract is worth 10 million euros ($12 million), while Griezmann can choose to stay with the team permanently for 40 million euros ($47 million).
Atletico said the initial contract was a one-year loan with the option of extending it for another year and being renewed by either party.
Barca's statement also added that the deal included an obligation to sign Griezmann on a permanent basis, and that the Madrid-based team would also pay Griezmann in full.
The 30-year-old France international left Atletico for €120 million to join Barca in 2019, but his performance at Camp Nou struggled to meet expectations, scoring 22 league goals in two seasons.
Barca will replace Griezmann on loan with Sevilla striker De Jong, the Catalan club confirmed in a statement. De Jong, 31, came to Camp Nou on loan, where he could opt for a permanent transfer. He played for Sevilla for two seasons, making 69 appearances in europa leagues in 2020, scoring 10 goals.
Head coach Ronald Koeman, who wanted a No. 9 player before Griezmann left, backed the deal but sports superintendent Matu Almani and Ramon Aircraft Company were not convinced.
However, as the clock ticked on Tuesday, Barca began negotiations with Sevilla with the aim of bringing in Dutch strikers to increase their depth of attack, and this summer, Sevilla have already lost Messi and Griezmann.
Barcelona's precarious financial situation has made them willing to consider firing Griezmann, who is understood to be earning around €20 million a year.
According to media reports, the club has previously offered to trade Griezmann for Saul Negtz or João Felix this summer.
Instead, Saul will leave Atletico on loan to join Chelsea for a one-season loan period after which he will have a permanent option.
Barca on Monday tried to sign Felix on loan, but on Tuesday made another offer that could give Griezmann a transfer. However, Atletico's board was reluctant to let the Portuguese striker go.
Griezmann joined Atletico from Real Sociedad in the summer of 2014. In 2018, he won the Europa League for France, and in the same year, he helped France win the World Cup. He is fifth on the club's all-time goals list, scoring 133 goals in five seasons.
Griezmann's move to Barcelona is a long-standing and controversial transfer legend. He almost joined Atletico in 2018, but ultimately decided to stay at Atletico – a process documented in a documentary called "The Decision" produced by players – until the final conversion was completed in July 2019.
Atletico were also outraged by the news that negotiations with Barca began in March of that year, when Griezmann was still competing with The Horse for the trophy.
In December 2019, when Griezmann returned to the Wanda Metropolitano with Barca, some Atletico Madrid fans chanted "Griezmann is dead" and a banner was unfurled during the match that read: "You want a name, but you forget you're a man."
De Jong is a surprising alternative to Griezmann, the source told ESPN that the club's first priority in the final days was purely to reduce wage spending.
Even if Messi moves to Paris Saint-Germain, club president Laporta explains that salaries still account for 95% of the club's revenue, while total debt has risen to 1.135 billion euros. The league's spending cap forces clubs to spend 70 percent of their earnings on paying wages.
In addition to Griezmann, Barca also released Mauriba and Royal on Tuesday. Moriba initially joined Leipzig for 16 million euros and Emerson joined Tottenham for 25 million euros, alleviating some of the club's financial problems.