He did not convince everyone at Bayern Munich: a former loanee is currently one of the world’s most in-form players

Three stunning goals in three weeks: a former Bayern Munich defender is among the most in-form players in the world.

It began with frustration. On 19 August, Barcelona planned to unveil Joao Cancelo as a new signing once again. Wearing full kit and a shirt bearing the number '2', the Portugal international walked through the Camp Nou ahead of the Trofeo Joan Gamper, eager to greet the fans alongside world champion Rodri, who had signed shortly before.

But Cancelo never got his moment that evening, as Barcelona beat Al-Ahly 2-1. Just before he was due to step onto the pitch, someone called him back. Video showed the agitated defender gesticulating wildly in the corridors, throwing up his arms in frustration before marching back to the dressing room. Later, he sat in the stands in civilian clothes.

Barcelona's officials had tried until the last moment to finalise Cancelo's transfer in time. The paperwork was still incomplete, though, and bureaucratic hurdles remained. He had to wait until the following day before the Spanish champions officially announced him as a new signing.

Paperwork had caused trouble in the final stages of a Cancelo move before. In mid-January, Barca wanted to bring him back on loan for half a year from his then club, Saudi Arabia's Al-Hilal. The Blaugrana confirmed the move on their social media channels before taking the announcements back offline shortly afterwards. The club sheepishly admitted to As that it had announced Cancelo's signing prematurely, "without clarifying all the important details of the transfer."

As in the summer, January's hold-up soon gave way to a happy ending, and Cancelo officially joined head coach Hansi Flick's squad. It was his third spell at Barca: they had also brought him to Catalonia on loan from Manchester City for the 2023/24 season. This time, however, the arrangement was intended to be permanent.

How long is Joao Cancelo under contract at Barcelona?

Cancelo and his powerful agent Jorge Mendes are said to have pressured Al-Hilal into terminating his contract with the Saudi Pro League's leading club. Cancelo also skipped the training camp and reportedly told Barca sporting director Deco "that I will either come to Barcelona or not play for a year. I have always identified with this club." The free transfer followed, and he signed a contract running until 2029.

Faith and resilience, his two most important guiding principles, helped him finally gain some long-term clarity about his future. Cancelo considers them non-negotiable. He has the English words "Faith" and "Resilience" tattooed on the back of his neck, along with a cross.

Already familiar with Barcelona, Cancelo needed virtually no time to settle in. The defending champions have made a flying start to the new LaLiga season, with everyone at Barca raving about Lamine Yamal's genius, Raphinha's incredible finishing, the pace of new signings Karim Adeyemi and Anthony Gordon, and Rodri's composure on the ball in the centre. Cancelo's contribution to the Blaugrana's extraordinary performances deserves just as much attention.

The 32-year-old has played in seven of eight competitive matches and started three of the last four. He has also registered three goal contributions. His versatility is hardly new, but it remains remarkable. Flick has used him this season at right-back, on the left side of defence and as a right winger. Cancelo's touch, vision and intelligent movement fit his team's well-oiled machine. His coach enthuses about the "fantastic technique" and "great passion" he brings to Barca's play.

Joao Cancelo scores stunning goals in succession

During the recent extended international break, Cancelo carried that form into Portugal's matches against Denmark (4-2) and Norway (2-1), scoring in both. He now has three goals in competitive matches this season, all of them stunning. The first was a long-range strike under the bar for Barca in their 7-2 goal fest against Racing Santander in mid-September. The shot reached 128.5 km/h and won LaLiga's goal of the month vote.

Against Denmark, wearing Portugal colours, he met a fine pass inside the penalty area with a technically demanding lob over the onrushing goalkeeper Mads Hermansen. A few days later against Norway, he caught a bouncing ball from 17 metres with his right boot and thrashed it into the top corner. The former Benfica player then received a standing ovation from the crowd at Porto's Estadio do Dragao. Cancelo is brimming with confidence.

Bayern Munich saw this kind of form from Cancelo only in flashes. At the end of January 2023, the Munich club signed him on loan from Manchester City in a fairly surprising move. Many initially saw it as a transfer coup, but it ultimately became a decent loan spell, no more and no less. Cancelo's performances for Bayern in the turbulent second half of the season under Julian Nagelsmann and his successor Thomas Tuchel were not quite top-drawer. One goal and seven assists in 24 appearances were nevertheless perfectly respectable.

On the final matchday, at least, he enjoyed a happy ending as Bayern won the title in a long-distance battle with Borussia Dortmund. It soon became clear, however, that Bayern would not exercise their €70 million purchase option. The sum was certainly steep, but Bayern's bosses made no attempt to negotiate it down either. Reports suggested not everyone at the club was convinced by him. According to Bild, some also had doubts about Cancelo's temperament, which at times showed in his unpredictability (Pep Guardiola can probably confirm that). Cancelo briefly returned to Manchester, while the German record champions gave him a rather perfunctory two-sentence farewell on X.

Why did Bayern Munich not sign Joao Cancelo permanently?

Tuchel explained later that summer that Cancelo's departure had been for "no footballing reasons", "because he is a fantastic footballer". Bayern, however, felt well equipped at full-back after signing Raphael Guerreiro on a free transfer. Alphonso Davies had recovered after a lengthy absence, while talented academy product Josip Stanisic was also available. "So it was a question of the position and the finances," Tuchel said.

For Cancelo, Germany had been "harder than expected". He explained: "I thought the Bundesliga was easier than it was, and that Bayern dominated much more, especially because they had won ten titles in a row." He still had fond memories of Bayern: "It was a club that gave me a lot in the six months I was there. I worked with great players, and the club is spectacular."

Munich remains only a brief chapter in Cancelo's eventful career. He has played at a high level around the world, representing Valencia, Juventus and Inter Milan alongside the clubs already mentioned. He became the first professional footballer ever to win league titles in four of Europe's five top leagues.

Rarely has he played as well as he is now. And there is no sign of frustration, even though Flick gave him a breather in last weekend's 3-0 win over Getafe after four (long) appearances for Portugal.

Joao Cancelo's career statistics: