Barcelona have now confirmed that director of football Mateu Alemany will leave the club at the end of the transfer window, with Deco taking full control as sporting director.
This news comes as something of a surprise, given that Alemany decided to reject an offer from Aston Villa to stay at Barcelona earlier this summer.
Deco replaced Jordi Cruyff as sporting director at the end of last season, having initially been given the task of also taking over Alemany’s duties ahead of his move to Villa. With Alemany performing a u-turn to then stay, the two were expected to work together.
However, President Joan Laporta has now made the decision to part ways with Alemany and give further powers to Deco. A club statement has confirmed that “Deco and Mateu Alemany will continue to work together until the closing of the transfer window.”
A lack of consistency off the pitch
It remains to be seen how this sudden change will affect Barcelona’s dealings going forward, but the lack of clarity surrounding the hierarchy highlights the chaos off the pitch which has set the club back in recent years.
Differences in opinion over transfers amongst the leaders and manager Xavi have affected the strategy, but the board did back the coach after he decided against a move for Neymar.
Alemany is a highly-rated director, and his departure may come with some disappointment. Xavi has previously described him as “instrumental,” and Deco now has a much bigger responsibility in his role.
Barcelona have a lot of work to do in the transfer window. Ilkay Gundogan, Inigo Martinez and Oriol Romeu have all been signed, whilst a deal for Joao Cancelo looks to be progressing.
Xavi’s side drew 0-0 away at Getafe in a disappointing opening day as La Liga champions, and they will hope to secure a victory at home against Cadiz on Sunday.