Barca agree to swap Eto’o for Ibrahimovic

BARCELONA last night confirmed they have agreed a deal for the Inter Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic, with Samuel Eto’o travelling in the opposite direction.

The conclusion of the deal depends on both agreeing personal terms.

The fee involved was not specified, although Spanish media have reported it will be in the region of €40m.

Barca’s out-of-favour midfielder Aleksandr Hleb could also be heading to Inter on loan as part of the deal.

Barcelona’s president, Joan Laporta, has made clear the deal had not yet been completed and the club were still considering other options, including Valencia striker David Villa.

“The Ibrahimovic deal is not done and dusted and it would be too early to say which of the two options is the most satisfactory,” Laporta said. “In the end we will choose the option that is best for Barca.”

Director of football Txiki Begiristain also stressed that there is nothing definitive regarding the future Barça centre forward role.

“There are several options open, and we have to work on them and operate as well as we can. Ibrahimovic is one of the options we have,” he said.

After confirming Barcelona feels “it is time for a change” in reference to Eto’o, Begiristain said Inter would be a good destination for the Cameroonian, “especially given that their president, Moratti, and their manager, Mourinho, have shown their interest in him”.

Ibrahimovic would be Barcelona’s second buy of the close season following the signing of Inter’s Brazilian left-back, Maxwell, in a €4.5m deal which could eventually rise to €5m.