Barcelona sporting director Deco has hinted at significant transfer moves for the league leader to reduce the over-dependence on Raphinha and Lamine Yamal next season.
Deco’s concern comes when Barcelona’s two wide men have been on a devastating run of form throughout the season, with Raphinha racking up 34 goals and providing 26 assists in the campaign.
Yamal, 17, has also amassed 13 goals and 19 assists across all competitions. He has played in 42 matches and has been the go-to guy for the Catalan giants under Hansi Flick.
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Deco has claimed the club is overly reliant on the two wingers in an alarming interview ahead of the summer transfer window.
The duo have been key in a successful season that has brought in the Spanish Super Cup and Copa del Rey, while they lead the La Liga by seven points with just three fixtures left.
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Despite the overwhelming success chalked up, Deco suggested Barca may need to look at signing “similar players” to reduce the pressure on the pair.
Barcelona are ahead of the pack in the La Liga title race with 82 points from 35 games so far, sitting seven points ahead of Real Madrid.
However, the over-reliance on Raphinha and Yamal has been obvious, with the wingers having played 65 games in the league alone.
The Brazilian international, Raphinha, has also featured in all 14 of their Champions League matches, while Yamal has 13 appearances in Europe’s elite club competition.
In an interview with ESPN, Deco expressed confidence in the current squad and the club’s direction ahead of the summer transfer window:
“I don’t believe that this team, given its dynamism and joy, will have anyone wanting to leave.
“We’ve already renewed most of the players, now we need to take care of the ones that are still there.
“Suddenly, we feel very dependent on Raphinha and Lamine.
“Maybe we need similar players, a solution for them. The squad is quite balanced, and we have a lot of good players in the youth team too.”
Raphinha and Yamal are expected to feature against Espanyol in the Catalan Derby on 15th May, and obviously in the rest of the games for the season bar any injuries.
With Deco already acknowledging the need for reinforcement, the 2025/26 transfer windows would potentially be an exciting one to watch for Flick, as they look to go a step better than the Champions League semi-final they managed in 2024/25 and lift the trophy for the first time since 2015.
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