Deco, the sporting director of Barcelona, confirmed in an interview with The Times that relying on La Masia players is not due to the financial crisis, but rather because of their technical quality and their ability to contribute to the first team.

Deco said: "As a sporting director, you must first evaluate what is inside the club before heading to the market, and when you have players like Lamine, Kobarci, Gavi, Balde, or Marc Casado, they are important players for us now, and you do not need to sign other players."

He continued: "People say that Barcelona bets on young players because of the financial situation, but this is not true, we bet because they are good enough; if they were not, they could not play at Barcelona."

He added: "We are very lucky with the quality of this generation because we did not have to look into the transfer market to strengthen some positions. La Masia helped us, but it helped us because they are quality players."

Deco also explained the importance of attracting external talents when needed, saying: "If that happens, Lamine will be happy. I know his dream is to win something important with Barcelona. If I were in his place, I would follow what the club is doing."

Regarding selling players, he clarified: "Our basic idea is not to sell players; Barcelona is not a club that likes to do that, but of course, we have to improve in this aspect. Sometimes selling is necessary, and to sell young players, there must be control and knowledge of contract expiration dates and a plan for their future."

About Marcus Rashford, loaned from Manchester United with a purchase option, Deco said: "Rashford is happy with us and is a wonderful player. He took on the responsibility of becoming an important player at Manchester United at a young age and faced some difficulties with the team changes."

He added: "We were looking for a player like him, capable of playing in three attacking positions. We succeeded in signing him on loan thanks to his desire to play with Barcelona. He waited a lot, and we are happy to have him with us."

Regarding accepting the sporting director position in 2023, Deco said: "President Joan Laporta was very brave. We had to rebuild the club step by step, developing the team, the stadium, and the finances, and this is not easy."

He continued: "It was not my idea to become a sporting director, but the president always told me, you must become the sporting director."

Deco concluded his talk by emphasizing renewing contracts of young players while maintaining market flexibility, saying: "Our basic idea is not selling, but sometimes it is necessary, and attention must be paid to contract expiration dates and putting a future plan in place."