Al Nasr reach agreement with Marseille on Barrada

Dubai - Blue Wave set to sign the Moroccan international on a three-year deal

Al Nasr have reached an agreement with French Ligue 1 club Marseille to sign Abdelaziz Barrada, paving the way for the Moroccan international to return to the UAE for a second stint.
The 27-year-old midfielder, who represented Abu Dhabi club Al Jazira for one season, underwent a successful medical in Rome and is expected to land in Dubai in the next 48 hours to put pen to paper on a three-year deal with the Blue Wave.
Al Nasr confirmed the news of the agreement on their official Twitter account, late on Monday night. They didn't divulge any more details on the financial terms of the contract but Barrada, who still had a contract running with Marseille until June 2018, has been signed up for a transfer fee of £1.50 million, according to transfermarkt.co.uk. The website had pegged his market value at £2.63 million.
"Al Nasr have come to an agreement with Marseille club on Moroccan international Abdelaziz Barrada and he will join the club for three seasons," the club tweeted.
Barrada's signing will significantly bolster Ivan Jovanovic's squad as they prepare for their first ever foray in the quarterfinals of the AFC Champions League. The Oud Metha club are set to take on Qatar's El Jaish on August 24.
Barrada replaces Chilean Luis Antonio Jimenez, who departed the club to join Qatar Stars League club Al Arabi. Jonathan Pitroipa, who was signed on from Al Jazira and Jires Kembo-Ekoko, who moved from Al Ain, are expected to be retained but rumours have it that Nilmar is set to make way for Al Sharjah's Wanderley.
Barrada spent one season with Al Jazira from 2013-14 and formed the foreign quartet with the then retained Ricardo Oliveira and Shin Hyung-Min and along with Paraguayan international Nelson Valdez.
He made 22 appearances and scored 10 goals for the Pride of Abu Dhabi. Barrada also made eight appearances for Al Jazira in the AFC Champions League and scored four goals and had four assists.
Barrada began his career with French club US Sénart-Moissy before making 43 appearances for the Paris Saint-Germain 'B' team. He then went on to play for Spanish side Getafe 'B' before earning promotion to the main team. After his spell with Al Jazira, Barrada joined Marseille where he made 33 appearances.
james@khaleejtimes.com