Deco, Barcelona’s sporting director, has claimed they are not interested in signing Manchester United’s wantaway wonderkid JJ Gabriel.
The 15-year-old winger, who has stunned United by asking to leave, was in Barcelona last week after holding talks with their bitter rivals Real Madrid.
It led to speculation that the two clubs could be in a head-to-head battle for Gabriel, but Deco has sought to distance Barcelona from a move.
“There’s nothing to say about this boy,” Deco said at a conference in Portugal on Thursday. “It’s normal we always have players linked with us. There’s a huge market for that, even when they are young.
“We are not interested in any player in his situation. I’m not sure what’s happening, and if he’s still a Manchester United player. We are not involved in that. First of all, we need to understand how the situation is before we try to do something. To speak about young, teenage players, it is not our business.”
United have so far refused to deregister Gabriel after being shocked by the youngster’s request to quit the club last week.
Senior Old Trafford officials have still not given up convincing the teenager that his future is best served at United, but the situation does not look good.
Gabriel has not been seen at United since scoring a hat-trick on his Uefa Youth League debut against Sabah a fortnight ago and appears determined to leave.
He will turn 16 a week on Tuesday, when he will be free to appoint an agent. He would need a European passport to be able to move to Spain.
United have been measured in their public statements about Gabriel and feel they have done everything in their power to identify a clear pathway for the youngster and show him how highly they regard him. They have also been clear that, if it came to a new contract, they would not be beaten on wages.
“He’s a young boy, JJ,” Michael Carrick, the United manager, said. “I think the exposure and the scrutiny and everything, you’ve got to be careful and be sensible and think of him as much as anything.
“So the situation will work itself out, whatever way it’s going to work itself out. Making sure he’s OK is the important thing.”