JAKARTA - Paris Saint-Germain have completed the signing of Barcelona's talented young player, Dro Fernandez, after reaching an agreement to pay just over his release clause of 6 million euros (around Rp119.7 billion) to the LaLiga club.
The 18-year-old shocked Barcelona this month when he revealed his intention to leave the club in January 2026 to seek regular playing opportunities.
"I am very happy and very proud to join Paris Saint-Germain. This is a very proud moment for me and my family."
"I am very excited and motivated to play and give everything for this shirt," Dro said at his presentation with PSG.
A number of top European clubs are interested in signing the young player, but PSG have won the competition to get his signature.
Les Parisiens manager Luis Enrique played a key role in completing the deal. Launching ESPN, the Spanish coach - who has the same agent as Fernandez, Ivan de la Pena - spoke to the player over the phone and convinced him to move to France.
Fernandez's decision was not well received by Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, who has shown great faith in the attacking midfielder, who has been compared to Thiago Alcantara and Pedri.
Flick took Fernandez - who joined Barcelona's academy at 14 in 2022 - on a pre-season tour of Asia last summer, where he scored in a win over Daegu FC.
The German manager has also given him his debut in LaLiga and the Champions League this season.
Speaking last weekend after Fernandez communicated his decision to leave, Flick said he did not want players who were not 100 percent committed and implied that those around the player had played a big role in influencing him.
However, Fernandez does not see a clear path to the first team at Barcelona, especially as part of Flick's formation, which is essentially a 4-2-3-1, with Frenkie de Jong and Pedri in midfield.
In Flick's system, Fernandez's best role is as a number 10. However, he has seen Fermin Lopez, Dani Olmo, and Raphinha take a lot of playing minutes.
Fernandez can actually also play in the wing position, but in the end he prefers to play as a number 8 player.
Despite appearing five times in the first team this season, he has only played for 148 minutes, with his last appearance as a substitute against Atletico Madrid on December 2, 2025.
Like Flick, the club was surprised to learn of Fernandez's decision. In fact, there was hope that the player would sign a new contract with a higher release clause after turning 18.
He celebrated his 18th birthday on January 12, 2026, with teammate Raphinha giving him a cake on the flight home from the Spanish Super Cup final (Supercopa de Espana) in Saudi Arabia, but it turned out to be his last appearance in a Barcelona shirt.
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