Sporting directors rarely enjoy a quiet August, and Deco’s summer at Barcelona has been anything but.
Between fielding calls from agents, fielding calls from journalists, and fielding the occasional awkward question in a press room, the Portuguese executive has become one of the most scrutinised figures in Catalan football this window.
Much of that scrutiny has centred on a position Barcelona simply cannot afford to get wrong.
Every club goes into a transfer window with a shopping list, but few face quite as glaring a gap as the one Barcelona now have up front.
That gap has only grown more pressing since two familiar faces packed their bags and left the building.
The exits of Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres have left sporting director Deco with two very different problems to solve up front.
Speaking about the situation, Deco made clear the scale of the challenge still facing Barcelona’s recruitment team.
“We’ve lost two players up front, Lewandowski and Ferran,” he said. “I think we can find solutions for Ferran with the signings we’ve made. Robert’s situation is much more difficult; it’s very hard to replace a player like him.”
Barcelona’s chase for a new centre-forward has fuelled plenty of speculation in recent weeks, with a move for World Cup winner Julian Alvarez having previously been the club’s priority before that pursuit stalled.
Deco stopped short of naming a specific target when pressed on Barcelona’s plans, but confirmed the club’s business isn’t finished.
“There’s a lot of speculation, but we’re going to make a move,” he said.
Asked directly whether Barcelona might turn to options already within the squad rather than the market, Deco suggested that remains a genuine possibility.
“We have options within the squad, but we have to keep looking,” he added.
It leaves the door firmly open for further incomings before the window shuts, even if Deco was unwilling to reveal exactly where Barcelona’s attention is currently focused.
For a club that has already spent heavily this summer, the search for a long-term successor to Lewandowski looks set to remain one of the more closely watched subplots before deadline day arrives.
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