Deco Defends Gordon Over Rashford in Barça's Transfer Strategy

Barcelona sporting director Deco has drawn a clear line in the sand: Anthony Gordon over Marcus Rashford was not a financial whim, but a football decision.

The club allowed a €30 million option on Rashford to lapse after the England forward hit 14 goals in a title-winning campaign that delivered LaLiga and the Spanish Supercopa. Instead, they pushed the boat out and paid €70m to Newcastle United for Gordon to become their new starting left winger.

Deco insists that choice was about identity, not sentiment.

“We are extremely grateful to Rashford,” he told RAC1. “He contributed a lot last season, but our idea of play is much more linked to Anthony. His style fits with what the coach [Hansi Flick] is looking for.”

Gordon, 25, has yet to score for Barça, but he has wasted no time shaping the attack. Five assists in his first five games tell their own story. So did the reaction at Montjuïc during the recent 5-2 win over Rayo Vallecano, when supporters repeatedly chanted his name. The chemistry is already there.

For Deco, that spark was the whole point.

“We see every training session and analyse the team,” he said when asked why Barça chose Gordon over other options. “We have a clear idea what we're looking for. One of the areas we struggled last season, without Raphinha, was that the team's energy dropped. It was lost.

“We needed more intensity. We analysed a lot of wingers. Signing someone from the Premier League is almost impossible, but [Flick] was clear with what he wanted and we worked on a deal from there.”

Gordon was one of six senior additions in a busy summer window, joining Rodri, João Cancelo, Karim Adeyemi, Gabriel Jesus and Dominik Livaković as Barça reshaped the squad around Flick’s demands.

Not every long-term target walked through the door.

Bernardo and Julián: deals that died on the table

Bernardo Silva, for years a name linked with Barcelona, instead chose the other side of the Clásico divide and signed for Real Madrid. Deco said the collapse of a potential move to Catalonia came down to role and minutes, not just money.

“He wasn't what we were looking for in the end,” Deco explained. “I love him. He's one of the best in the world in his position.

“He wanted to come to Barça, but things didn't move forward because we have certain parameters. It wasn't just a financial issue, it was also about playing time.

“It's not up to me to say if he is going to play or not, that's the coach's decision. But he had a different perception to us after playing [regularly] at City. He wanted to play.”

Another pursuit that went nowhere involved Julián Álvarez. Deco stressed Barcelona’s conduct and rejected any suggestion the club tried to force the Argentine into agitating for an exit from Atlético Madrid.

He revealed Barça put €100m on the table, payable in three instalments, but said Atlético never showed the slightest inclination to negotiate. The door stayed shut.

Lamine, Ballon d'Or and a “scandal” snub

Deco’s tone shifted from pragmatic to passionate when the subject turned to awards. He backed Lamine Yamal as the standout candidate for the Ballon d'Or and tore into the omission of Raphinha and Pedri from the 30-man shortlist.

“I think [Lamine's the favourite], no doubt,” he said. “Not just for what he's done with Barcelona, but he's won a World Cup with Spain as an important player, too.

“Let's not forget he went into the World Cup with an injury as well. He was the best player in LaLiga last season. It's not because it's Lamine, our player, it's because I like football.

“For me, it's a huge scandal [that Raphinha and Pedri aren't also nominated]. I don't understand these lists. Seeing that Pedri's not there, with the talent he has ... I don't get it.”

Between the lines, Deco laid out the new Barça: a team built around intensity on the flanks, clear internal “parameters” on roles and minutes, and a belief that its brightest talents should be shaping not only the club’s future, but world football’s biggest prizes.