Miralem Pjanic reaches Barcelona after beating COVID-19

ISTANBUL

Barcelona’s new signing Miralem Pjanic arrived in the Spanish city on Thursday evening after recovering from COVID-19.

“I feel ready and recovered. I have had a couple of weeks at home, but I have tried to stay fit. Now I’m looking forward to joining the group,” Pjanic told reporters at the airport, according to a statement on the club's website.

“Today is a very special day for me and I’m very happy. I can’t wait to meet my new teammates and I’m really looking forward to the new season. I hope I can help the team to win a lot of titles. I’m ready and I’m going to try to do everything I can for this club.”

Pjanic, 30, was in isolation since Aug. 23 after testing positive for COVID-19.

His test results were clear after two weeks of quarantine and he was allowed to fly out to Spain.

Pjanic’s €60 million ($71 million) transfer from Italian club Juventus was sealed in June, with the midfielder signing a four-year contract with Barcelona.

He helped Juventus win four Serie A league titles, two Italian Cup trophies, and an Italian Super Cup.

The Bosnian has also played for French teams Metz and Olympique Lyon, as well as Italy’s AS Roma over the course of his career.