German side Borussia Dortmund have completed the deal for Ukrainian AndriyYarmolenkofor an undisclosed fee.
The German Bundesliga outfit announced the deal just before Barcelona revealed that they have snapped up their target Ousmane Dembele.
The Catalan side wants Dembele to be the long term replacement for Brazilian forward Neymar Jr., who moved to Paris St Germain this summer. The deal for Dembele is reportedly worth £135.5 million plus add-ons to be paid from the £198 million Neymar payout.
The 27-year old Yarmolenko agreed a four year deal with Dortmund. He has won the Ukraine Premier League thrice with Kiev, scoring 137 goals in 339 games. He has also featured for the national team where he netted 29 times in 69 fixtures.
“Andriy is a player we have been pursuing for a long time,” the club said.
There are concerns that the aging player might not be able to fill Dembele’s boots though. The club has been selling its best players for years so once Barcelona were serious about buying the youngster, it was only a matter of time.
There are wild speculations that Manchester City might move in for their striker Pierre-EmerickAubumeyangjust before the transfer deadline. Fans would turn if that happens as the squad is already less competitive. City have Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus that should be enough for now.
The more plausible move is that of Julian Draxler. The PSG forward remains inconsistent so he could return to Germany to feature for Dortmund. The 23-year old former Wolfsburg man could earn a first team shirt if he joins them but they would need to pay up for Le Parisien to release him.
Dortmund recently signed right back Jeremy Toljan from Hoffenheim. The 23-year old agreed to a five year deal amid report he was headed to England to play for Tottenham. He was a prominent member of the German side that won the European U-21 Championship.