Joao Cancelo’s Barcelona return held up by administrative issues

Joao Cancelo has resumed training with Al Hilal while Barcelona work to overcome the final administrative obstacles delaying his permanent return to the Catalan club.

The Portugal international took part in Al Hilal’s training session at the Al Majdiah Sports Center in Riyadh on Friday. He had been absent from the Saudi club’s pre-season camp in Austria after completing his involvement with Portugal at the 2026 World Cup.

Cancelo’s return to training briefly raised doubts over whether his proposed move to Barcelona could be completed during the current summer transfer window. However, Catalan newspaper Mundo Deportivo reports that the 32-year-old is only training with Al Hilal while the two clubs wait for the transfer to be formally concluded.

According to the report, the delay is not because Barcelona have abandoned their plans to sign the defender. Instead, the Catalan club is dealing with bureaucratic obstacles, including unresolved tax-related matters, before the agreement can be officially confirmed.

Once those issues have been settled, Cancelo is expected to return to Barcelona to sign a new contract. The proposed deal would run for two further seasons and remain valid until 2028, with the transfer fee understood to be between 8m and 10m euros.

Cancelo spent the second half of last season at Barcelona on loan from Al Hilal. His performances were reportedly enough to convince Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick that he should remain part of the squad.

The Portuguese full-back originally joined Al Hilal from Manchester City in the summer of 2024. He made a strong impression during his first season with the Saudi club, but was left out of their domestic squad for the following campaign.

That situation prompted Cancelo to begin looking for a way out of Al Hilal, with Barcelona emerging as his preferred destination after his successful loan spell. His return to the club’s training ground is therefore understood to be temporary rather than a sign that the proposed transfer has collapsed.

Barcelona’s priority is now to resolve the remaining off-field details before bringing Cancelo back to the club on a permanent basis. The defender’s next move depends on the completion of those formalities, rather than on any change in the sporting agreement between the player and the Catalan side.