FC Barcelona's Sporting Director and former player Deco confirmed on Wednesday that the Catalan club will not rush into buying a replacement for Gavi as they believe that there is no one of his quality in the transfer market.
Gavi, 19, had a complete Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) tear and will miss 7-9 months of action, confirmed the club in a press release earlier.
Gavi is one of Xavi Hernandez's most trusted troops and while his absence will be significantly felt by the club and its players, Deco stated that they have no intention of signing a replacement.
“As of today, Gavi is a player who cannot be replaced. There is no player on the market available to do his job, neither with his mentality, nor with his ability," Deco said while talking to Agencia EFE.
“To argue about replacing Gavi is a mistake; it is a mistake to think that we are going to find a player to replace him. We won’t,” he further added.
He then added that Gavi's injury is a big loss but the club will not rush into signing a replacement.
“We are not going to go crazy with Gavi’s injury. It’s sad for him, for us as a club, but we won’t find a replacement," he added.
Xavi could always turn to La Masia to call up players to cover up for the injured midfielder as he has acquired the services of the likes of Fermin Lopez, Aleix Garrido and others in the past.
Earlier, there were reports that Barcelone are considering signing Argentina and Tottenham Hotspurs’ midfielder Giovani Lo Celso who was also on the club’s radar in the summer.
The club believed that since he isn't getting any minutes at the North London club, a move to Spain, a country he has played in before, could tempt him to move but Deco's comments have made it clear that no midfield signing will be made in January.
It must be noted that Barcelona, a club desperate for any extra income, will get around €4-5m in compensation from FIFA for Gavi’s long-term injury, nothing can cover up the loss as one of their most important players will be out for the entire season.