Paris Saint-Germain have completed the signing of Rafinha from Barcelona, with the former Blaugrana man signing up for three seasons with the French champions.
After successfully completing the additions of Moise Kean from Everton and Danilo Pereira from Porto over the course of the last two days, plus youngster Sekou Yansane from Dijon, sporting director Leonardo rushed to race through a deal for the Brazil international, with the transfer window in France closing at at 2300 BST.
The speed of negotiations picked up over the course of final hours of the window and discussions between the two clubs quickly came to a positive conclusion, with Rafinha's deal at Camp Nou having had only one year left to run.
The 27-year-old had been at the Camp Nou side since his teenage years, having joined them in 2006 but has never been able to firmly establish himself as a first-team force due to a succession of injury issues.
Indeed, when he played 24 matches in the Primera Division in 2014-15, it was the most he ever managed.
At the beginning of the following season, he suffered a serious knee injury away from home against Roma in a 1-1 draw and missed the remainder of the campaign, and though he returned the following campaign to score six times in 18 La Liga matches, more knee trouble meant an extended period on the sidelines. His career at Barca has not recovered since.
Instead, he has spent much of the last two years away on loan, first at Inter in Serie A then at Celta Vigo, where he also spent the duration of the 2013-14 season. Last term in Vigo, he managed 29 Primera Division appearances and returned four goals.
In total, he played 30 times for Celta – the most matches he had played since his breakthrough year with Barca.
The next stage of his career, however, lies in Paris, where an attacking midfielder has been sought for several weeks.
PSG return to action after the international break with a Ligue 1 trip to Nimes, quickly followed by a Champions League home date against Manchester United, who themselves announced the signing of former Parisiens striker Edinson Cavani on deadline day.
