Martin Montoya has joined Valencia after Barcelona agreed to terminate the contract of their youth-team product.
The 25-year-old defender played 66 games for Barca since making his debut in 2011 but was unable to nail down a first-team berth at the Nou Camp and spent time on loan at Inter and Real Betis last term.
Barca have now given Montoya the green light to leave the Nou Camp and he has moved down the east coast of Spain to La Liga rivals Valencia.
Former Spain U-23 international Montoya had been with Barca since the age of eight.
Alex Song leaves for Rubin Kazan
Former Cameroon international Alex Song has joined Russian side Rubin Kazan after his contract was cancelled by Barcelona.
The 28-year-old midfielder spent the last two seasons on loan at West Ham after joining Barca from Arsenal in 2012.
Song, who began his career at French club Bastia, last played for the Spanish champions in May 2014, making a total of 39 La Liga appearances during his time at the Nou Camp.
Clement rules out England role
Bayern Munich assistant manager Paul Clement has confirmed that he will not be joining Sam Allardyce’s England coaching team.
Allardyce had hoped to make the 44-year-old part of his backroom staff, with the FA attempting to negotiate a deal with the Bundesliga club that would have seen him handed a part-time role during international breaks.
Clement was sacked as Derby manager last season but has built a strong reputation as an assistant.
Clement said: “After consultation between FC Bayern Munich, the English FA and myself it was decided that it is in the best interests of everyone involved for me to concentrate solely on the job I have in Munich.”
Basti’s successor
Bayern Munich defender Jerome Boateng believes he is ready to take over as Germany captain following Bastian Schweinsteiger’s international retirement.
Schweinsteiger announced last week that his Germany career was over, after 120 games for his country, to leave coach Joachim Loew with the task of finding a replacement as captain.
Former Manchester City defender Boateng is one of several high-profile candidates who could take over the armband, and told Bild that he felt up to it.
He said: “I would certainly be ready. It is an important role. You are representing your country and you have responsibility.”
Manuel Neuer and Mats Hummels, as well as Juventus midfielder Sami Khedira, have all been touted as candidates.
Poland forward Milik joins Napoli
Poland striker Arek Milik has moved from Ajax to Napoli for €35 million. The 22-year-old replaces Gonzalo Higuain, who joined Juventus last week.
“It’s an honour I will become a part of Napoli with its amazing fans full of passion, a great club with a glorious history. I want to make these fantastic Napoli fans happy,” he said.
Milik’s move came after an im-pressive showing at the European Championship where Poland reached the knockout stage even though he only became a regular with Ajax in the second half of the season in which he scored 21 league goals.
Saints’ signings
Southampton have signed French right-back Jeremy Pied on a free transfer following his departure from Nice and added Crystal Palace keeper Alex McCarthy for an undisclosed fee.
The 27-year-old Pied, who has signed a two-year contract, is re-uniting with manager Claude Puel for the third time having already played under him at Nice and Olympique Lyon.
McCarthy, 26, made seven appearances at Palace following his move from QPR in July 2015.
He had signed a three-year deal and would compete with Fraser Forster for the gloves.
Boateng agrees terms for Las Palmas deal
Ghana midfielder Kevin-Prince Boateng has agreed terms with La Liga side Las Palmas after being released by Milan at the end of last season.
The 29-year-old, who previously had spells with Tottenham and Portsmouth in England, is set to undergo a medical before being unveiled to supporters at the Estadio de Gran Canaria.
A statement on Las Palmas’s official website said: “Las Palmas has reached an agreement with representatives of the player Kevin-Prince Boateng.
“Las Palmas had been working on incorporating this player since early July. It is certainly the most important foreign player who has joined the club in recent decades.”
Boateng made only one league start during his second spell at the San Siro, having arrived on a short-term deal in January after leaving Bundesliga’s Schalke.