Laporta promises more Barcelona signings and hints at Koeman stay

Barcelona president Joan Laporta has promised Sergio Aguero will be the first of "a series" of new arrivals this summer.

The 32-year-old striker was unveiled as a Barca player on Monday having signed a two-year contract.

The summer window is shaping up as an eventful one at Camp Nou as they look to recover from a disappointing season in which they finished third in La Liga and were knocked out of the second round of the Champions League.

What did Laporta say?

Laporta is confident Aguero will help strengthen his side ahead of the 2021-22 campaign and insists there will be more additions to coach Ronald Koeman's squad.

"We told Koeman we were trying to sign Kun Aguero, any coach would want to have him in their squad," Laporta said at a press conference.

"Kun's signing is important because he is an exceptional player, he plays in a position that is very important in any system and in ours too.

"We want him in a competitive team, we also want Leo [Messi] to stay and he knows that...he is the first of a series of signings you will see in the coming month."

What about Koeman?

The relationship between the club and Koeman has hit a snag in recent weeks.

Laporta said last week that they will have talks with the 58-year-old to decide if he will stay in charge next season. The president also said that Koeman, who suffered a heart attack last year, recently ended up in hospital after an "episode", a revelation the coach and his agent did not like.

Koeman responded by saying he is in good health, while his management accused Barca of treating him unfairly by suggesting he could be sacked.

Laporta suggested the former Netherlands boss will remain in charge, but insists they must evaluate where their campaign went wrong. 

"We said that we were opening a period of reflection about Koeman, we have to evaluate what went well and not so well last season," he said.

"The wish is to respect the contract, bringing together criteria which we need to talk about still.

"We will continue with the period of reflection with Koeman then in a week or 10 days we will decide.

"We are going to see how the conversations with Koeman develop. They are going very well, but we need a little more time."

Who else could Barcelona sign?

The Catalan club are reportedly close to signing Memphis Depay and Georginio Wijnaldum this summer.

The pair of Netherlands internationals are available for free after reaching the end of their contracts at Lyon and Liverpool, respectively.

Eric Garcia is also on his way back to Camp Nou from Manchester City in a free transfer.

Meanwhile, Brazilian full-back Emerson is on the verge of joining from Real Betis in a deal worth €9 million (£8m/$11m).

Barca are also hoping to convince Lionel Messi to sign a new contract before his current one runs out this summer.

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