This year has seen significant changes taking place in the executive positions of FC Barcelona, especially with the departure of Jordi Cruyff. The Catalan club has already decided upon a replacement for the departing Director, but nothing has been made official yet.
New Sporting Director to be officially announced today
According to SPORT, FC Barcelona will officially announce the appointment of Deco as the club’s new Sporting Director. This position will make Deco the top sports manager at the club, and his power will be even greater than that of the current Director of Football, Mateu Alemany.
It is pertinent to note here that although he was not officially announced as a part of the Barcelona hierarchy, Deco has been working with Mateu Alemany and Xavi Hernandez over the last few months. However, his role until now was that of an external advisor, but now he will be undertaking operations on the club’s behalf and taking decisions only in a matter of days.
Deco looking for three more signings
The report further mentions that Deco is looking to announce himself in his new position by pursuing three players. He has already been working towards the signing of a right-back ever since he started working with the Blaugranes, and has made this acquisition a top priority for the Catalan club.
The Portuguese executive already has met with the super-agent Jorge Mendes for the acquisition of Joao Cancelo, and his signing could be Deco’s first big move at Barcelona.
Deco and Mendes have an excellent working relationship between them, as they have known each other for a long time. Negotiations for Cancelo are on the right track, but nothing is concluded yet.
However, Cancelo is not the only right-back that interests Deco, as the Portuguese is also a keen admirer of Real Valladolid player, Ivan Fresneda. He is currently working with a plan to sign the youngster and send him on loan to ensure that Barcelona get a top-level asset before other interested teams can scoop in for him.
Lastly, Deco is also looking for a disruptive player in offensive positions, and both Giovani Lo Celso and Joao Felix are options for the new Sporting Director. However, Barcelona currently have little wage space to incorporate one of them, and one of Ferran Torres or Ansu Fati will have to leave before Barcelona can go in for these players.
Thus, FC Barcelona will be seeing a significant change in the future strategy and direction of the club with such a high-profile change at the top. Deco is looking to announce himself with a bang with these three acquisitions, which will also help Xavi compete for all the trophies in the season ahead.
