Here is the story behind FC Barcelona's move for Francisco Trincao

Everything began a year and a half ago at the U19 Euros. In July 2017, Portugal won the competition and Francisco Trincao finished with five goals to his name, topping the scoring charts alongside his teammate Diogo Jota. Barça scouts were impressed by the youngster and let the sporting department know of his promising talent.

meetings in Barcelona

Pep Segura, Ramon Planes and José  Mari Bakero met with the player's agent shortly after the Euros. The player had a buyout clause of €12.5m at the time but it wasn't a fee Barça weren't willing to pay.

Instead, the club offered around €5m with variables taking it to €6m. The plan was for him to start with Barça B and, over time, move onto the first team. SC Braga felt they could get more for Trincao and ruled out selling him for less than his buyout fee. 

A DEAL WAS ALMOST DONE WITH Juventus

In January of 2019, Juventus approached Braga with a significant offer. The player was open to joining 'The Old Lady' but the negotiations over a fee broke down and Trincao remained in Portugal.

FRESH BARÇA OFFER

In the summer of 2019, Trincao once again starred for his country, this time in the U20 World Cup. Despite Portugal failing to hit the heights of previous years, the forward still stood out as a special talent. His best performance came against the Republic of Korea.

Eric Abidal and Ramon Planes met with the player's agent once again and were willing to pay €15m for his immediate transfer to the Camp Nou.

In the end, the deal was left on the table but it never came to fruition.

Atalanta enter the race

Trincao still had another chance to leave in the summer of 2019 when Italian side Atalanta made an offer for his services.

Once again, Braga felt the offer undervalued the forward's potential and they turned it down.

After seeing various moves break down, Trincao decided to focus on his career at Braga and force his way into the first-team picture there. FC Barcelona kept tabs on his progression and held a close relationship with the player's representatives, as well as Braga. 

Benfica enquired about his situation

Trincao took advantage of his time at Braga and, whilst not being a guaranteed starter, was showing glimpses of his potential at the highest level. Atalanta continued to watch him, as did Portuguese giants Benfica. Braga, alongside Trincao's agents, let Barça know of the growing interest.

This was because Trincao's first choice was to sign for FC Barcelona and play alongside Lionel Messi. Fellow national icons Figo, Quaresma and Simao had all spent time at the Camp Nou and he wanted to follow in their footsteps.

DOUBLE DEAL

Franc Carbó, who works alongside CEO Oscar Grau, travelled over to Braga in order to finalise a deal. This came after Braga's president visited Barcelona in order to secure a deal for Abel Ruiz. Trincao came up in that conversation and both sides felt now was the time to reach an agreement.

Barça made it clear that Trincao would only be an option for them in the summer. They were informed that whilst his buyout clause would remain around €30m, there would likely be a lot more competition for Trincao's signature then.

The perfect solution was to agree a deal which would secure Trincao's future in January and allow him to get regular football at Braga until making the move over to Spain in the summer.