Samuel Umtiti arrives in Barcelona

After Thursday’s presentation of Lucas Digne, now it’s the turn of another Frenchman, Samuel Umtiti, who arrived in Barcelona later on in the day. At 5.00pm CET, and like his compatriot shortly earlier, he posed for the traditional photo outside the club offices, with the famous crest behind him.

After posing in front of the badge, the young French player spoke for the first time as a Barça player. Samuel Umtiti said more than once that this was “a dream come true” whilst also revealing his ambition: “I hope to be a great success at Barça.” “I will work very hard to win the confidence of the coaching staff.”

“It’s a happy day for me,” he added with a smile. He continued: “I am at the most important club in the world. I am very happy to be here and share a dressing room with world class players.” Finally, Umtiti gave fans an idea of just the kind of player he is: “I am a hard-working, unfussy player who has very clear objectives.” 

It’s going to be a busy couple of days for the former Olympique Lyon player, with the bulk of the activity reserved for Friday. Here’s the schedule (all times CET). 

-At 1.30pm: Official presentation in the first tier of the Camp Nou terraces.
-At 2.00pm: Photo session on the Camp Nou pitch. Public access to the terraces from 1.45pm.
-At 2.30pm: Media conference in the Ricard Maxenchs pressroom, where Umtiti will be joined by vice-president for sport Jordi Mestre, director of professional sports Albert Soler and technical secretary Robert Fernández. The conference will be streamed live with an English translation here at www.fcbarcelona.com.