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Barcelona acquires Sporting's Sabrosa
Posted: Monday May 17, 1999 04:42 PM
LISBON (Reuters) -- Barcelona has agreed on a $15 million deal to sign 19-year-old striker Simao Sabrosa from Sporting Lisbon, the Portuguese club said on Monday. Sporting gave no further details of the transfer but reports in both Portugal and Spain said Simao will sign an eight-year contract at the end of the current season. Barcelona was not available to confirm the reports on Monday but club coach Louis van Gaal is understood to have been tracking the player in recent weeks. Simao will be making the same journey from Sporting to the Nou Camp made four years ago by Luis Figo, Barcelona's vice-captain and one of the leading performers in the side this season. Van Gaal said this month he needs to strengthen his squad to be able to compete for honors in Europe as well as at home, with the expanded Champions League set to stretch the resources of even the biggest clubs. Simao's signing will give van Gaal a natural replacement for Figo -- who last week welcomed the prospect of the youngster joining him at Barcelona. "I know he's a very good player," Figo said when asked about the possibility of Simao signing. "I've never played alongside him, because when I was at Sporting he was in the youth team, but from what I've seen and heard he's having a great season. "He's one of the best players in the country and he'll be very welcome here. He'll strengthen the squad and help us to challenge for more honors." The signing of the Portuguese international will also strengthen the hand of van Gaal, who has been under fire for signing so many Dutch players. Since joining the club at the start of the 1997-98 season van Gaal has brought in a total of eight of his countrymen, including Patrick Kluivert and Frank and Ronald de Boer.
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