Barcelona sporting director Deco reportedly has a contingency plan should the club fail to keep Joao Cancelo beyond the end of the season, a move that would reshape the club’s left-back options for next year.
Cancelo is on loan from Saudi Pro League side Al-Hilal, and Barcelona still want to retain him — ideally by persuading him to terminate his contract and move for free. That approach has real consequences because Al-Hilal want a transfer fee, and negotiations are not progressing easily.
The concrete alternative Deco is said to have put in motion is Caio Henrique. According to UOL in Brazil, Deco has already been in touch with the agent of the Monaco left-back, who has been linked with Barcelona several times in past years. Monaco want around 15 million euros if they are to part with Caio Henrique this summer.
There are three clear figures that shape how urgent this is: Monaco’s roughly €15 million asking price, Caio Henrique’s 28 years of age, and the fact he has one year left on his Monaco contract. Those details make him a plausible short-term buy if Cancelo’s exit cannot be achieved without a fee.
Context matters: Barcelona’s priority remains to keep Joao Cancelo, but the club faces a simple arithmetic problem — either secure a free departure, pay Al-Hilal, or find an alternative. Caio Henrique offers a cost-effective profile precisely because Monaco may prefer to sell now while he has only one year remaining on his deal. The club is also monitoring Alejandro Grimaldo and, less realistically, Marc Cucurella — who remains a more difficult option because of his long-term deal with Chelsea and a significantly higher valuation.
That list of alternatives underlines a broader squad issue. Alejandro Balde remains Barcelona’s only natural left-back option within the current first-team squad. Gerard Martin has been shifted into a more central role, and Jofre Torrents is still developing and recovering from injury, leaving depth thin if Cancelo departs and the club does not secure an outside signing.
The friction is clear: Barcelona hope Joao Cancelo will be able to terminate his arrangement with Al-Hilal and stay without a transfer fee, while Al-Hilal insist on receiving one. Deco’s contact with Caio Henrique’s agent is both pragmatic and time-sensitive — Monaco’s asking price of about €15 million reflects that the player has one year left and could command a fee now rather than risk losing him for less or for free later. At the same time, Real Madrid manager Carlo Ancelotti is believed to have Caio Henrique in his plans for the Brazilian national team, a point that adds another layer to Monaco’s calculus and to any potential bidding landscape.
If Deco’s contingency proves decisive, Barcelona will pursue Caio Henrique this summer only if talks with Al-Hilal remain stalled or too costly; otherwise the club will keep pressing to retain Cancelo. The single, consequential fact shaping the coming weeks is straightforward: whether Barcelona can secure Joao Cancelo’s departure without paying a fee to Al-Hilal. If they cannot, Deco’s fallback — a roughly €15 million move for Caio Henrique — will determine how the club fills a critical defensive hole for next season.
