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Franck Kessié is on the verge of becoming a new Barcelona player ahead of next season as a free agent, with an official statement by the Spanish club expected to arrive in the coming weeks. 

The AC Milan midfielder has already signed his contract that will keep him in a Blaugrana shirt until at least 2026, with Kessié set to receive a net salary of €6.5 million ($7.2 million) plus add-ons for the next four seasons, CBS Sports soccer insider Fabrizio Romano reports. The Ivory Coast international completed his medicals in the past few days to secure his new deal. 

The 25-year-old Kessié joined AC Milan in the summer 2017 for around €28 million from Atalanta and played 214 games with the Rossoneri where he has scored 36 goals. 

Kessié was always considered a pivotal player in the last couple of seasons played at San Siro, but then negotiations over a new deal collapsed in the fall of 2021 when AC Milan chose not to improve their offer on the table. The agent and the player decided to talk with other clubs to find a solution with Barcelona coming out as the best opportunity available in the past few weeks. 

Barça boss Xavi Hernández himself wanted Kessié, so much so that he called him several times during the negotiating process in order to seal the deal. Barcelona, fresh off an emphatic 4-0 win at the Bernabeu over their chief rivals Real Madrid, are currently working to sign other free agents after landing Andreas Christensen from Chelsea and Kessié out of Milan. The club will now focus on Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta and AFC Ajax right back Noussair Mazraoui. Meanwhile, Kessié will focus to conclude his final season in a AC Milan shirt in hopes of winning his first scudetto with the Rossoneri as they are currently at the top of the Serie A table. You can catch the race for the Serie A title all season on Paramount+.