Mundo Deportivo: Deco personally met Bissiwou, and after twists and turns finally brought him to Barcelona

Mundo Deportivo journalist Carlos Monfort published an article revealing the process and some details behind Barcelona’s successful signing of Bissiwou.

Bissiwou’s signing is one of Barcelona’s most important future investments this summer. The sporting management and scouting departments moved before several European giants monitoring the player, and people inside the club firmly believe he could be sold for a much higher fee years later. To understand how the deal was finalized, we need to go back nearly a year.

The initial reports were very positive. Joao Amaral and Deco discovered a player with excellent technique, speed, strong dribbling ability and quality in one-on-one situations. Born in 2008, Bissiwou almost possesses everything Barcelona looks for in players of his age group.

This was not a decision made hastily after watching a few matches. The scouting department conducted comprehensive monitoring, and even before the first trip, Amaral and Deco had already communicated several times with people close to the player to understand his wishes and confirm whether the operation could realistically move forward. The responses were always positive.

January 27 was the key moment. Deco and Joao Amaral personally flew to Brussels to meet Bissiwou and his closest team. The player, represented by YouFirst, completed the process accompanied by Marti Mobindi and former Sevilla player Tom De Moor.

That meeting almost pushed the deal into its final stage. Bissiwou had already been very interested in the possibility of joining Barcelona, and Deco’s personal visit had a huge impact. The sporting director has an advantage that other clubs find difficult to replicate: he not only represents Barcelona, but is also a former professional player who won almost every major honor and is respected worldwide. Someone like him flying over specifically to explain the plan in person carries enormous weight for such a young player.

Bissiwou was convinced, and Barcelona knew when they left Brussels that they had received the player’s approval. The next step was the more difficult one: convincing Club Brugge.

The next important advance came on April 20 in Lausanne, taking advantage of the UEFA Youth League semi-final event. Joao Amaral proactively requested a meeting with then Club Brugge sporting director Davy Rigaux to formally communicate Barcelona’s interest.

The communication between the sides went smoothly and the feeling was positive. The issue was never the relationship between the two clubs, but Club Brugge’s sporting policy. The Belgian club is known for developing players and had no need to sell young talents while they were still only in the academy stage. The club’s idea was to continue developing them, promote them to the first team, let them prove themselves in the Belgian league and European competitions, and then sell them for a higher price later.

The Belgian side’s logic was simple: if a major club was willing to pay a high price for a young player, his value would continue to rise after he gained Champions League or Europa League experience. Therefore, Club Brugge set a very high asking price from the beginning.

Barcelona submitted an offer first, but it was rejected. However, the sporting management considered this normal in this type of negotiation. Nobody thought about withdrawing. The scouting reports were outstanding, and Bissiwou himself was very willing to join.

The negotiations had ups and downs, and there were several occasions when Barcelona felt Club Brugge’s demands were too high, but the sporting assessment never changed. Deco and Amaral both knew this was a player worth continuing to pursue.

During that period, the negotiating counterpart also changed. Rigaux left Club Brugge for Feyenoord, and Barcelona had to continue discussions with a new management structure, with Maarten De Dobbeleer becoming one of the main figures in charge. Both sides needed to address some issues again, but the deal continued moving forward. Barcelona then launched another push and eventually reached an agreement.

The player’s own desire played a decisive role. Despite interest from other clubs, Bissiwou continued to put Barcelona first. The negotiations lasted a long time, and he felt significant pressure at certain moments. He wanted to wear the Blaugrana shirt, watched week after week pass, and at one point felt helpless because the two clubs could not reach an agreement.

Barcelona reassured him. The sporting management told him that the club’s commitment to signing him had never changed and that they would continue working until a solution with Club Brugge was found. Those words helped the player remain calm during the most difficult moments.

After arriving in Barcelona, his adaptation has also progressed smoothly. Bissiwou has his parents and trusted people who accompanied him throughout the process by his side. He is currently living in a hotel close to the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper while preparing to settle permanently in the city. His family has already found a place to live and is waiting to complete the move, while the club has provided them with a car to make travel easier.

On the pitch, his adaptation has also been positive until the minor incident this week. Bissiwou was injured during the Catalonia Cup match against Sabadell and had to be taken off on a stretcher, causing initial concern. Mundo Deportivo had previously reported that follow-up examinations ruled out a serious injury and that he only needed to miss a few days.

None of this will change the high expectations surrounding him. This signing was the result of months of reports, trips, meetings, rejected offers and drawn-out negotiations. There were tense moments, but also the determination of a player who wanted to join Barcelona from the beginning.

Bissiwou had felt frustrated because the agreement took so long to arrive, but one thing always kept him calm: Barcelona gave him a promise. And when Barcelona makes a commitment, it acts and gets things done.