Barcelona have started thinking about possible signings for this summer, but sporting director Deco is also looking further ahead. He has his eyes set on a player that would not be about to join until 2028, that being Palmeiras sensation Eduardo Conceicao.
Back in January, Deco held talks with Conceicao’s representatives, as he sought to gauge the numbers behind a possible deal. Three months on from that meeting, Barcelona have now communicated to Palmeiras their intention to make a move for the 16-year-old winger, who could not be able to move to Europe until January 2028, as per FIFA rules on players under the age of 18.
The problem for Barcelona is that they have been trailing Manchester City in the race to sign Conceicao, with the Premier League giants having already signalled their intention to spend €40m on the teenager. Despite this, the Catalans will have their chance to sign him, with Sport reporting that Conceicao has put a possible move to England on hold for the time being.
The reason for this is that Conceicao is prioritising a move to Barcelona, and he wants to know how Barcelona intend to structure his possible signing. Even if Man City put forward an unrejectable offer at this stage, the player would knock it back, as he wants to understand the situation regarding a future move to Catalonia, which will be done during impending negotiations between his representatives and Deco.
This summer is poised to be a big-spending one for Barcelona, who want to add Alessandro Bastoni and Julian Alvarez to Hansi Flick’s squad for next season. This could affect whether a deal can be arranged in 2026 for Conceicao to join in 2028, but until clarity is offered by Deco, no decisions will be made by the teenager, who is expected to make the step up to the Palmeiras first team in the coming months.
