Brazilian midfielder Arthur Melo doesn’t want to play for Barcelona anymore. According to Goal.com, Arthur refused to re-join Barca for their UEFA Champions League campaign due to his previously agreed $80 million transfer to Juventus.
Barcelona sold Arthur to Juve back in June, but have him under contract through August and team’s coach Quique Setien expected to have him at his disposal for the upcoming round-of-16 rematch against Napoli. However, the 23-year-old midfielder used the break after the end of La Liga season to go to Brazil and has now informed the club that he doesn’t intend to come back to Spain.
Arthur is reportedly unhappy with the way he was treated by Barca and felt he was forced out of the club since he wanted to stay at Camp Nou. He is now trying to terminate the remaining month on his contract to officially cut all ties with the Catalan giant.
Barca, on the other hand, told Arthur that he is still their player and that he’ll face disciplinary actions if he doesn’t report. Their roster is currently thin in midfield due to injuries and suspensions, and they expected to have the Brazilian on the bench in case of an emergency.
Arthur joined Barcelona in 2018 in a $50 million transfer from Gremio. He played 72 games for the club in the past two seasons, helping them win one La Liga title.
