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Football

26.02.2010 13:37

Piqué staying until 2015

www.fcbarcelona.cat

Gerard Piqué has renewed his contract with FC Barcelona until 2015 and has seen his buy-out clause rise from €50 million to €200 million.

The 23-year-old defender will stay at Camp Nou until June 30 2015, at least, after putting pen-to-paper on a new deal with the Blaugrana on Friday afternoon and he could not hide his delight. as well his personal terms improving, Piqué has seen his buy-out valuation quadruple.

Piqué was joined by members of his family and his agent as he signed the new contract along with president Joan Laporta, sporting vice president Rafael Yuste, economic vice president Joan Boix, technical secretary Txiki Begiristain and director of football Raül Sanllehí.

Future captain

"It is an historic day," Laporta told Barça TV and www.fcbarcelona.cat. "Gerard's renewal means that we have a quality player for many years to come. His attitude, knowledge and commitment to Barça make him a reference and a symbol of the club. I am convinced that he will become the captain of Barça."

Continue winning

Piqué then revealed is feelings. "I am delighted to be staying," he said. "It seems like a long time to look ahead and that makes me happy. Now I want to continue winning. The feeling of winning is unbeatable. Now we have to look ahead to more great things."

Tenth renewal

This latest deal means that Barça have now renewed the contracts of ten first-team players since the summer as Touré Yaya, Valdés, Pedro, Messi, Puyol, Abidal, Iniesta, Márquez and Jeffren have all agreed new deals while coach Pep Guardiola has penned a one-year extension too.

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Praise for Txiki

"I do not believe that there is any other player in Europe playing at his level at his age," Pep Guardiola told the media when asked about Gerard Piqué on Friday. "He is very competitive and ambitious. He is strong in the air and dominates at set pieces." The coach then reflected on the work done by technical secretary Txiki Begiristain to re-sign the player from Manchester United in 2009. "It was an historic decision that deserves respect," he added. "Txiki was really brilliant. We now have a central defender for years to come."