19-year-old United States international signs five-year contract at Camp Nou with buy-out clause set at €400m (£362.9m)
Thursday 1 October 2020 14:54, UK
Barcelona have completed the signing of right-back Sergino Dest from Ajax in a deal worth up to €26.2m (£23.8m).
Ajax will receive an initial fee of €21.2m (£19.2m) and an additional €5m (£4.6m) in add-ons for Dest, who has signed a five-year deal at the Camp Nou with a buy-out clause set at €400m (£362.9m).
Barcelona have beaten off competition from Bayern Munich to land the 19-year-old United States international, after seeing an offer to take Max Aarons on loan rejected by Norwich City.
Sky Sports News reported earlier this month that Barcelona had agreed personal terms with Aarons but the deal broke down as Norwich wanted to include an obligation to buy at the end of the loan.
The German giants are also in the market for a young right-back and have rivalled Barcelona for Dest and Aarons while also expressing an interest in Brighton's Tariq Lamptey.
Barcelona are continuing their rebuild under new boss Ronald Koeman after having seen Miralem Pjanic and Francisco Trincao join the club from Juventus and Braga respectively.
The La Liga giants have looked for a new right-back after Nelson Semedo's £36.8m departure to Wolves last week while also sanctioning the sale of Luis Suarez to Atletico Madrid and Arturo Vidal to Inter Milan.
Dest joined Ajax in 2012 and came through the youth ranks, making his first-team debut in 2019 and going on to score two goals in 38 appearances for the Eredivisie club.
The summer transfer window closes at 11pm on Monday October 5 with a feast of activity lined up on Transfer Deadline Day on Sky Sports News and across our Sky Sports platforms.
A domestic-only window for deals between the Premier League and EFL then runs from October 5 and closes on Friday October 16 at 5pm. Follow all the news and analysis on SSN and across Sky Sports' digital platforms, including with our dedicated Transfer Centre blog.