Former Portuguese star Deco, currently Barcelona’s sporting director, gave an interview to the Catalan press and directed criticism towards Athletic Bilbao regarding the collapse of their star Nico Williams’ transfer to Barcelona in the summer. He said: “We considered bringing Luis Diaz from Liverpool, but it was a difficult option as Liverpool initially refused to sell him. We wanted Rashford, but Manchester United insisted on selling him, not loaning as is the case now, so we looked for other solutions. Nico Williams did not meet the striker profile we were looking for but can play on the right or left wing, and Ferran Torres is the number 9. His agent came to us and offered his services but was unhappy with the contract terms and wanted to impose his conditions on us. The agent was looking out for his own interests.”

Final Deadline

Deco continued: “We set a final deadline to hear his response to our terms but received no reply and everyone went their own way. We heard a lot of nonsense from Bilbao claiming we were chasing their player. I don’t want to talk about a player who is not ours. I am loyal to my work and the players, but I don’t think Bilbao is a role model in this matter. Bilbao should worry about Nico’s agent who visited Barcelona several times to offer the player. We don’t get angry at another club if one of our players allows his agent to offer his services to them.”

Deco refused to discuss negotiation details with Nico’s agent, saying: “I don’t want to get into that. I have relationships with player agents and they shouldn’t be exposed publicly. Every agent looks out for his player’s interest, which is normal, but all I wanted to say is that Nico’s agent came to us, not the other way around.”

Summer Transfers

Deco expressed satisfaction with the summer transfers and revealed the difficulty of retaining young stars amid big clubs’ interest. He added: “Barcelona’s shine has returned, and players now want to play here. We have the advantage of paying them the same or less. People talk a lot about Barcelona’s problems with Financial Fair Play rules, but Barcelona has no problem with the rules. We don’t complain; the rules apply to everyone. The loan deals we made were primarily for sporting reasons and also helped us stay within spending limits. For example, we let Jan Vertonghen leave for Mallorca because he wanted to play in the first team, not the reserves. It wasn’t a sporting decision from our side; we wanted him to stay and I met him personally but couldn’t convince him.

Selling Trincao can be considered part of Financial Fair Play, but the rest of the decisions were purely sporting.”

Deco changed Barcelona’s fitness coaches and believes his young squad is better than last season’s. When asked why he bought goalkeeper Juan Garcia from Espanyol despite having German Marc-André ter Stegen, Deco said: “First, Marc is a great goalkeeper and team captain with a history we respect a lot. The goalkeeping issue is not about Marc. We must have backup goalkeepers in case of his injury. We wanted to buy a young goalkeeper; if we sought quick solutions, we would have bought a 28 or 30-year-old goalkeeper. Garcia gives us options for now and the future. The problem at Barcelona is that the media blow things out of proportion. We are not looking for a replacement for Marc but to support Iñaki Peña because the other goalkeepers are very young and we wanted a third backup goalkeeper.”

When asked if ter Stegen would be in goal by January, Deco said: “We have no plans regarding Marc currently. We have problems in the goalkeeper position and brought in Cushen from Chile after Garcia’s injury, despite his importance in the U-20 World Cup with his national team. If Marc was ready to play, certainly he would. He is under contract with us and has the right to state on his Instagram account that he will return after surgery in three months or talk about his personal issues; he is free to do so. Sometimes players say publicly what should remain within the club, but everyone has freedom and I have no problem with that.”

Gavi’s Future

Regarding Gavi’s future after surgery, Deco said: “I said last season that Gavi is an irreplaceable player with a remarkable presence. He is a complete player and maintains his level despite his young age (21 years). He has been in the first team for five years and suffered last season due to injury. I perhaps did not expect his absence for five months, but he is a lifelong Barcelona player. I hope he will be like Xavi and Puyol, who graduated from the academy and became legends. The situation is difficult for us and for him, but we must think beyond this season and make decisions based on medical staff advice to preserve Gavi for the future. Gavi is a club gem and will make history with us. We regret his absence, but these few months will be important in his career.”

When asked if he would resort to the market to compensate for Gavi, Deco said: “Our idea is clear: we don’t sell a player unless he wants to leave. Playing for Barcelona is a privilege, but every player has his own thinking, environment, and circumstances. Maybe we think one thing and the player thinks another. We have not received any departure requests from any player. The atmosphere in the locker room is great and everyone is eager to win. But having many players means the coach prefers to play whoever he wants. The important thing is we have talents to cover injury gaps and win.”

Deco confirmed his happiness with loaned Rashford but has not decided on buying him at the end of the season. He also confirmed ongoing contract extension negotiations with his Dutch star Frenkie de Jong, who is happy with his family in Barcelona.