Marco Verratti: Italy midfielder joins Qatari side Al-Arabi from Paris Saint-Germain in £39 million deal

Italy midfielder Marco Verratti has departed Paris Saint-Germain to join Qatari side Al-Arabi in a deal reportedly worth £39m.

The 30-year-old has penned a three-year deal with the Qatar Stars League side to end an 11-year spell in Paris.

Verratti won nine Ligue 1 titles with PSG, as well as six Coupe de France trophies, but Champions League glory eluded him, coming closest in defeat to Bayern Munich in the 2019/20 final.

A dynamic and technically gifted central midfielder, Verratti also played a central role in Italy’s Euro 2020 triumph.

He departed his home country in 2012 after impressing in the second tier of Italian football at Pescara, joining PSG aged 19.

Verratti departs with 416 appearances for PSG to his name, putting him second in the all-time list behind Jean-Marc Pilorget.

In quotes on the PSG website, Verratti said: "I’ve been very proud to play for Paris Saint-Germain for over a decade, to rub shoulders with so many great players and to win 30 trophies.

"Paris, the club and its fans will always hold a very special place in my heart. I’ll forever be a Parisian."

Al-Arabi sit sixth in the Stars League standings three games into the season.

The sale concludes what has been a busy summer of business for PSG, who are under new management since Luis Enrique took over as head coach.

The long-running saga over Kylian Mbappe's future resulted in the forward staying in Paris, but Neymar left for Al-Hilal in the Saudi Pro League and Lionel Messi departed on a free to join Inter Miami.

Goncalo Ramos, Marco Asensio and Milan Skriniar all arrived on free transfers, while big sums were splashed on Randal Kolo Muani, Manuel Ugarte, Ousmane Dembele and Lucas Hernandez.

Luis Enrique's side got off to a sluggish start in Ligue 1, drawing their opening two games, but they have since won two in a row to move second in the Ligue 1 standings, two points behind Monaco.

PSG face Nice this Friday, September 15 at 20:00 UK time, live on TNT Sports.

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