Barcelona Close to Sealing New Sergi Roberto Contract With Potentially Huge Buyout Clause

Barcelona are reportedly close to an agreement with versatile star Sergi Roberto over a new contract that will at least double, triple or even quadruple his €40m buyout clause.

Roberto, who has been with Barça since 2006 when he joined La Masia from Catalan club Gimnastic at the age of 14, has been the subject of much speculation.

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Clubs like Manchester United, Tottenham, Chelsea and Liverpool have all been linked with a move, with his buyout clause compared to metaphorical low hanging fruit.

With Roberto's current deal due to expire in 2019, Sport and Marca both report that an extension to the summer of 2022 has been agreed to. He is also expected to receive an improved salary.

The only source of uncertainty regards the size of the new buyout clause that will be included in the new terms. The report from Sport claims it will be somewhere between €100m and €200m, but Marca suggests it could even be as high as €400m, matching Philippe Coutinho.

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The news on Roberto's expected new deal follows official confirmation earlier this week of a new contract for long serving defender Gerard Pique, whose buyout clause is now €500m.