Barcelona have not disclosed the fee for Romeu but have included a 400m euros buy-out clause in his contract.

He spent last season with Girona, playing 33 times in La Liga as the Catalan side finished 10th.

After coming through Barcelona's youth teams, Romeu was given his first-team debut by Pep Guardiola in 2010-11.

Chelsea signed Romeu in the summer of 2011 for £4.35m but he struggled to make an impact and, following loan spells with Valencia and Stuttgart, he made a permanent move to Southampton in 2015 for £5m.

His time on the south coast ended in September 2022, having played 256 games, when he signed a three-year contract with Girona.

Romeu is Barcelona's third signing of the summer following the arrivals of free agents Ilkay Gundogan and Inigo Martinez.