Barcelona sporting director Deco has shade light that it was Nico Williams and his agent who repeatedly made contact about a major transfer away from Athletic Club, not the other way round, while also aiming a dig at their La Liga rivals.
Williams was a prime target for Barcelona in summer 2024 after he played a starring role in Spain’s European Championship triumph. Williams had formed a close friendship with Lamine Yamal and Barca were eager to unite the duo at club level.
Barca president Joan Laporta was confident about signing the winger by activating his release clause, which was then €58million (£51m).
However, Williams ultimately rejected Barca’s advances in order to continue his development with Athletic.
Barca returned for the 23-year-old during the most recent summer transfer window, triggering his exit clause and entering official talks with his agent.
But the Blaugrana were left disappointed once again. Williams was unsure if Barca would be able to register him with La Liga amid their financial problems and instead went on to sign an incredible new 10-year contract with Athletic.
The deal, which includes a new €87m (£76m) exit clause, was met with fury by Barca chiefs who had been left in the dark.
It is rare for the defending LaLiga champions to be snubbed by one of their key targets, particularly a Spanish player.
In a new interview, Deco has provided Barca’s side of the story.
He claims it was actually Williams’ camp who initiated transfer talks, and that the move fell through due to the forward’s high demands.
“It’s not a matter of registration guarantees; it’s very simple. It’s just that if you’re going to negotiate, tell me everything you need and what you want, and don’t change it afterward. That’s it.
Deco continued: “We simply set the club’s conditions, then we have to put the negotiations on paper, into contracts, and we said we wouldn’t accept the conditions they set us because no player is going to impose any restrictions on us, and in the end, nothing happens. We gave them a deadline to respond, but they didn’t respond; they went their way, and we went ours.
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