Barcelona sporting director Deco has admitted the Catalan giants were interested in signing Marcus Rashford from Manchester United in the winter transfer window.
Rashford completed a move to Aston Villa at the start of the month, joining on a loan deal with an option to buy at the end of the season.
While he opted to stay in the Premier League, the 27-year-old was linked with a number of European clubs before he signed for Unai Emery's side.
AC Milan, Borussia Dortmund and Juventus were among those said to be interested, while Como president Mirwan Suwarso recently admitted that they made an effort to sign the forward.
In fact, Deco refused to shut down rumours in January that the club were looking at the possibility of adding Rashford to Hansi Flick's side.
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Deco makes Rashford admission
The Barcelona sporting director has not admitted there was interest in the Englishman but insisted it was "not a priority" to secure his services.
"The winter transfer market is always difficult," Deco told SPORT. "It is true that there were important moments for Barca in the past, such as the arrival of Edgar Davids, but there is no Davids available on the market today. It is difficult because the good players, those who can contribute, are not available.
"It is true that Rashford was mentioned, that he could have come, but we were not desperately looking for a player either.
"We knew that we were getting players back, that others were going to reach their best form. If he could have come it would have been good, but it was not a priority."
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Did Barcelona need to sign Rashford?
A player of Rashford's calibre would have certainly added quality to the Barcelona squad as well as providing valuable depth in their bid to win La Liga, the Champions League and the Copa del Rey.
However, realistically, Rashford's potential signing would have been viewed as a bonus rather than a necessity in their efforts to add to the Spanish Super Cup they have already won this season.
Rashford would not displace Lamine Yamal and Raphinha as Barcelona's first-choice wingers given the standout performances that the pair have put in throughout the season.
Meanwhile, Robert Lewandowski is the club's undisputed number nine, meaning that position of the pitch would have also been closed off to Rashford.
As a result, he would have most likely had to settle for a substitute role if he had joined Barcelona in the winter transfer window.
