Barcelona are finally set to confirm the appointment of former player Deco as part of their sporting department, according to multiple reports.
The Brazilian-born former Portugal international left the club in 2008 as a player following an enormously successful spell, and has maintained relations with Barcelona President Joan Laporta ever since.
🎥 IMAGEN @JijantesFC
✍️ Deco ya se encuentra en las oficinas del Barça para ser anunciado como director deportivo.
🗣️ Rafa Yuste ha confirmado la noticia al entrar a las oficinas a las cámaras de Jijantes. Presentes en la firma Joan Laporta, Mateu Alemany, Rafa Yuste,… pic.twitter.com/iiyga1zDVE
— Jijantes FC (@JijantesFC) August 16, 2023
After Jordi Cruyff decided to quit the Sporting Director post in May, Deco was quickly moved into the role thereafter. He has been seen around the club for some time, and even mentioned as part of the transfer department by Laporta in public, but until now, has not been officially appointed.
Reported first by Gerard Romero, and then by Sport, Deco will be announced as the new Sporting Director, and then presented in September following the end of the transfer window.
🚨 Deco will finally be officially appointed by Barça today. @gerardromero 🇵🇹
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) August 16, 2023
Previously he had been operating as a scout for Barcelona in South America, while also acting as an agent. He has been forced to cut ties with his agency role as part of accepting the job, which may well explain the delay in the annoncement. As per the club statutes, a representative cannot be employed to sign players at the same time, and it will have taken some time for him to legally untangle himself, even if he has unofficially been working in his role for around three months now.
