Deco will build a “house” for Barcelona players

Catalan leader follows the “formula for success” used at Real Madrid, and bets on rest to improve athletes’ performance

Deco, a trusted man of president Joan Laporta, continues to work on internal changes at Barcelona . The club’s football director’s next mission is to build a new “home” for the Catalan club’s players. On match days, Hansi Flick’s players do a light training session in the morning and then spend the rest of the day at the Meliá Torre Melina hotel, near Camp Nou. However, the Brazilian-born Portuguese wants to change that.

Although it is a safe space, the accommodation is open to the public, and Deco believes it is not ideal for players to concentrate. The idea is to build a new place so that the athletes can be closer to the club’s training center, a space where the Blaugrana team can relax and concentrate before matches, as reported by Spanish media outlet Relevo.

The project has been approved internally, but has yet to come to fruition. There is limited space at the Ciutat Esportiva Training Centre, and they are looking for a nearby plot of land that could be acquired. This would allow, for example, players to sleep there when they arrive late after away games, and after morning recovery training sessions. This would save players time commuting home, maximizing the rest window between games.

Rivals Real Madrid are already following this model, with players having their own rooms at the Valdebebas Training Centre for the same reasons. With the Catalan club suffering from a spate of injuries, Deco could have a valuable ace up his sleeve to improve the health of his players. Hansi Flick is the first coach to hold training camps on match days since Pep Guardiola, who allowed players to stay at home with their families until hours before matches.