Barcelona acquires defender Murillo on loan from Valencia
BARCELONA, Spain (AP) — Barcelona has acquired Colombia center back Jeison Murillo on loan from Valencia to help patch up its injury-hit defense.
Murillo, 26, will join the club after passing a medical exam, Barcelona says. The loan, for the remainder of the season, gives Barcelona the option to buy Murillo for 25 million euros (28.6 million dollars).
He has only played three matches for Valencia this season and played for Inter Milan for two years before leaving at the start of last season.
Barcelona is without injured defenders Samuel Umtiti and Thomas Vermaelen, with Gerard Pique and Clement Lenglet its only available center backs.