Barcelona have agreed terms with Manchester United to sign defender Gerard Pique on a four-year deal.

The transfer will see the 21-year-old rejoin the Catalan giants, who he left to join United in 2004 at the age of 17.

He is set to sign a contract with the Nou Camp outfit this afternoon.

A statement on the Barcelona website read: "The player will this afternoon sign a contract that will link him to FC Barcelona until June 30th 2012 and which will include a buy-out clause of €50 million.

"With this transfer Gerard Pique returns to Barca, the club in which he began his career as a player between 1997 and 2004, when he left to join Manchester United."