Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick has thrown his support behind Marc Casado amid speculation linking the out-of-favour midfielder with a move to Chelsea.
Casado established himself as a regular at the base of Flick’s midfield in the first half of the season and received his first Spain call-up thanks to a string of eye-catching displays, perhaps most notably against Real Madrid and Bayern Munich.
But Casado has seen his minutes diminish significantly on the back of a costly mistake in Barcelona’s 2-1 defeat at home to Atletico Madrid in December, with Flick opting to take the 21-year-old out of the firing line.
Since Barca’s Spanish Super Cup triumph over Madrid, Casado has played the full 90 minutes on just one occasion and the youngster has not been handed a start in any of the club’s last five matches in La Liga.
It has led to inevitable questions over Casado’s future and recent reports emanating out of Spain claimed Chelsea had made an approach to lure the Spain international away from the Camp Nou with the promise of guaranteed playing time.
However, it’s understood Casado remains fully committed to the Catalan giants for the time being and Flick is adamant the defensive midfielder is still at the forefront of his plans.
‘No, He has not done anything wrong. I am also speaking with him,’ the Barcelona boss told reporters.
‘At the moment it is like this because Frenkie [de Jong] is doing really well, he is also producing a good level in ball possession and key moments.
‘This is what we need and at the moment it’s like this.
‘Frenkie starts, but Casa is also doing well.’
Flick underlined that his decision to leave Casado out of his starting XI in recent weeks was nothing personal.
‘It’s not a case of: when one plays, it is something against the other,’ the German added.
‘Everyone has their job. We are one team, and when everyone plays, they have to play well, it’s a normal thing.’
Pressed on his preference for De Jong over Casado, Flick replied: ‘I am very satisfied with the performance of the entire team.
‘It is easy to change players.
‘That is very important and is what I pass on to the team and even more so at the moment of the season we are in.’
Casado has a €100million (£83m) release clause in his current contract with Barcelona, which runs through to the summer of 2028.
It’s understood Chelsea are among a host of top Premier League clubs keeping close tabs on the Barca academy product who has been capped twice by the Spain national team.
‘The coach has helped me a lot to start playing games in the first-team and he gives me a lot of confidence to play,’ Casado said of Flick earlier this season.
‘He also tells me very clearly what I have to do so that I can get the best out of myself. I am very grateful to him.
It is clear that these are my first matches in La Liga and I am feeling comfortable. I think both the coach and my team-mates are helping me.
‘I am happy with everything and I hope it can continue like this,” Casado noted.
‘I think he has helped me a lot to be able to achieve my maximum performance and to understand many aspects of football so things can go even better.’
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