According to SPORT, Barcelona have decided not to sign Brazilian youngster Ze Lucas after closely monitoring his performances at the U-17 South American Championship.
Even though the talented midfielder has been making waves in Brazil and was offered to Barça by his club Sport Recife, the Catalan side’s scouts were not fully convinced about his potential.
Barça’s scouting team felt Ze Lucas didn’t show enough to justify spending €15 million on himespecially since Wolves had already tried to sign him with a €12.5 million bid that Sport Recife rejected.
With so many young midfielders already in their academy and first team, Barcelona do not see adding another player in this position as a priority.
It is to be noted that Deco, the club’s sporting director, even spoke directly with Sport Recife officials who travelled to Barcelona to discuss the transfer. He told them clearly that the club won’t be moving forward with any offer for Ze Lucas.
Barça focused on their own
A few days ago, Sport Recife’s sporting director, Thiago Gasparino, along with other club representatives, arrived in Barcelona to explore possibilities for Ze Lucas’ future.
Barça even helped cover part of the travel expenses for the player’s entourage, but after reviewing the player in detail, the club decided not to pursue a deal.
One of the main reasons behind this decision is that manager Hansi Flick already has many promising young midfielders available, both in the youth academy and the first team.
Bringing in another midfielder, especially one with no European experience, would only crowd the squad further.
Additionally, the high valuation of €12-15 million set by Sport Recife was considered too expensive for a player who has yet to prove himself outside Brazil.
Barcelona’s priority right now is to develop their current talents rather than invest heavily in more midfield prospects.
For these reasons, Deco and the scouting department agreed to end their interest in Ze Lucas.
