Barcelona agree deal for second exit of the summer to leave for free

Barcelona and Clement Lenglet will part ways imminently, after finding an agreement with the French defender to rescind the remaining two years on his deal. The centre-back spent this season on loan with Atletico Madrid.

Lenglet, 29, has been at Barcelona since a €36m move from Sevilla back in 2018, and has won everything available with the Catalan giants in Spanish domestic football, but has fallen out of favour over recent years, spending the last three seasons out on loan. After lengthy negotiations, Lenglet and Barcelona have agreed to terminate his deal.

Marc-André ter Stegen is back in Barcelona following a flight back from Germany. A meeting between him and the sports area is imminent. Ter Stegen remains furious. @sport

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) June 9, 2025

What next for Clement Lenglet?

Part of the reason for the agreement was due to Lenglet’s desire to continue at Atletico, after a season competing for a starting spot at the Metropolitano. Sport say they set out their stall early that they were not willing to take on Lenglet’s entire salary, and in talks between the three parties, it was agreed that he would leave Barcelona for free, and sign with Atletico on a three-year contract, as per Fabrizio Romano.

🔴⚪️ Clement Lenglet will become Atlético Madrid player from Barcelona, all agreed between club and defender.

Contract until June 2028. ⤵️🇫🇷 https://t.co/9T1FpEucmW

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) June 9, 2025

Lenglet has given up significant money to sign with Atletico, keen to stay, and Barcelona will save a gross salary of €16m per season. Should the deal with Los Rojiblancos manage to get their contracts signed with Lenglet swiftly, he will be able to play the Club World Cup.

Lenglet’s Barcelona career

In total, Lenglet made 160 appearances for Barcelona, scoring seven goals and giving three assists. Initially he won a starting spot alongside Gerard Pique, but fell out of favour after two seasons, and then moved to Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa on loan before Atletico. Lenglet won a Liga, Copa and Supercup title with the Blaugrana.

🚨🇫🇷 BREAKING: Atlético Madrid is about to sign Clément Lenglet. The deal is close to being finalized.

[🎖️: @MatteMoretto] pic.twitter.com/xMp0xu9irW

— Atletico Universe (@atletiuniverse) June 9, 2025

Lenglet’s season at Atletico Madrid

This season has been largely positive on the whole for Lenglet, who made 34 appearances for Atletico. He scored thrice and assisted twice, but like Atletico suffered a damaging month between March and April, in which he gave away multiple penalties in high-profile games.