Market: Haaland or Gyökeres at Barca? The answer from Deco

Smiles are back at FC Barcelona. After a difficult last season, the Catalan club has regained competitiveness with the arrival of Hans-Dieter Flick on the bench this summer. The Blaugrana are at the top of La Liga after 13 days, 6 points ahead of Real Madrid (with one game in hand), and have the best attack in the championship with 40 goals already scored.

Lewandowski stacks the goals

More than a third of Barça's La Liga goals have been scored by one man: Robert Lewandowski (14 goals). At 36, the Polish striker has regained all his effectiveness in recent months. The former Bayern Munich player averages 1.12 goals per match in all competitions (19 goals in 17 matches). Only Viktor Gyökeres (Sporting CP) has done better in Europe so far (1.35 goals/match).

This efficiency obviously makes FC Barcelona happy. So much so that the Catalan club, according to sports director Deco, is not considering recruiting a new center forward next summer. “What I hope is that Lewandowski stays at this level. For me, he is one of the most professional players I have seen in my life. It's no coincidence that he is at this level and continues to score so many goals. (…) I think it is very difficult to find a striker like Robert today. There are one or two of this level. Maybe Haaland…» , confided the manager in an interview with Mundo Deportivo.

Deco – «we are not looking for #9»

The Catalan daily did not miss the pole extended by Deco to question him about the Erling Haaland rumor (24 years old). The Manchester City striker has been associated with Barça for several years and rumors have recently suggested a possible transfer in the near future while the Norwegian's future in England is said to be uncertain. “We first need to know if Haaland is what we want for the future. Currently, we don't know anything about it. What we know today is that we are not looking for a No.9. We have Robert» he insisted. “When the time comes to make a decision, we will look at the options.»

Does Viktor Gyökeres, who is the most effective striker in Europe at this stage of the season, have the profile to be one of these options? “He's a good player, he's been scoring goals for a long time in Portugal, we know him but he's not one of our priorities today, because we're not looking for a No.9 to replace Robert» insisted Deco. We will have understood, Barcelona is now seeing next season with Lewandowski, whose contract runs until 2026. See you in a few months to see if this position has evolved.

For you, should Barça recruit a new center forward due to Lewandowski's advanced age? Do not hesitate to react and debate in the “Add a comment» …