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          Bartra to sign Barca contract extension

            Mar 13, 2014, 08:44 AM ET

            Barcelona have announced that Marc Bartra will sign a contract extension on Tuesday 18 March to keep him at the Nou Camp until June 2017.#INSERT
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            caption:Marc Bartra has played for the Barcelona first team 25 times since his debut in 2010.
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            The 23-year-old centre-back's contract was due to expire at the end of the season with Inter Milan and Valencia reportedly interested, but Los Blaugranas confirmed on their official website the player will put pen to paper next week.

            The club also revealed that Bartra's new contract will contain a release clause of 25 million euros.

            The Catalan club announced on Jan. 15 that an agreement between the club and the player had been reached, and the new deal will be a welcome boost to Barca in light of the news that club captain Carles Puyol has announced he will be leaving the club at the end of the season.

            Bartra has made 25 appearances for Barcelona since 2010, and received his first international cap for Spain in a friendly against Equitorial Guinea on Nov. 16 last year.

            The Tarragona-born player joined Barca’s La Masia academy in 2002, but appeared rarely under former coaches Pep Guardiola and Tito Vilanova despite becoming a regular for Spain's under-21 side.

            However, Bartra has become more prominent under new coach Gerardo Martino, making 13 Primera Division appearances this season.

            Barca trail Premier Division leaders Real Madrid by four points with 11 games left, but beat Manchester City 2-1 on Wednesday night to progress to the quarterfinals of the Champions League.

            Bartra posted a photo on Twitter on Thursday afternoon in a light training session alongside his Barca teammates.