New Barcelona defender Samuel Umtiti said he has fulfilled a childhood dream after putting pen to paper on his €25 million arrival at the Camp Nou.
Earlier this week Barca announced the signing of Umtiti, from Lyon for €25m, with a five-year deal including a €60m buy-out clause having been agreed.
The France international arrived in the Catalan capital on Thursday and then underwent a medical on Friday morning before being presented to fans and reporters at his new club's ground.
At the subsequent news conference at the Camp Nou, the 25-year-old said he had become emotional as soon as the chance to move to Barca and play alongside the likes of Lionel Messi, Neymar, Andres Iniesta and Gerard Pique had emerged.
"I am very emotional to be here with all of you, this is my dream," Umtiti said. "I want to thank Olympique Lyonnais for making it possible for me to enjoy this adventure. When I knew I could come to Barca I got very emotional. Some tears escaped. Since I was small I always wanted to come here. I am really looking forward to playing alongside these world class players. It will be special to play with the 'cracks' [superstars]. I watched the TV. I want to get to them know already."
Umtiti, who made 170 appearances for Lyon after making his debut for the club in the 2011-12 season, can play at centre-back or left-back. He said he had spoken with another former Lyon defender, ex-Barca player Eric Abidal, before making this big step up in his career.
"I spoke with Abidal and he had only good things to say about the club," he said. "He told me how things worked here, and the values of the club. I believe it is a perfect fit for me. I see now it will be something different, I will not have the same life as at Lyon."
���� @UmtitiSam steps onto #CampNou grass, clad head to toe in Blaugrana: https://t.co/VjVJ1XKnWA | #UmtitFCB pic.twitter.com/RuQeu27go7
- FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 15, 2016
Barca president Josep Maria Bartomeu confirmed during Euro 2016 that a deal with Lyon had been agreed for the player to join after the tournament. At that point Umtiti had not yet made his senior international debut, but he then started France's 5-2 quarterfinal win over Iceland, the 2-0 semifinal victory over Germany and the 1-0 defeat to Portugal in the final.
The youngster now faces a battle with other centre-backs Pique, Javier Mascherano, Jeremy Mathieu and Thomas Vermaelen to impress coach Luis Enrique and get playing time for his new club.
"It is true I was not a starter at first for France," he said. "I got the position through hard work. I showed I was able for it. There are good players in this squad too, and competition for places is always good. There are very good players in my position, there is no doubt about that. I will follow their example. I have very high objectives, although I will not share them all now. I want to play, although first to learn."
Umtiti said he had already spoken with Luis Enrique about how he fitted into the plans for next season.
"We spoke for a short time," he said. "He told me he was happy that I was signing for Barca. What we discussed is private. I am a player who likes to get on the ball and play out from the back. The style suits me, but I am first and foremost a defender."