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• Haaland and Gyokeres 'not a priority' for Barcelona, says Deco

  Barcelona sporting director Deco has said that a striker is “not a priority” for the club despite recent links to Erling Haaland and Viktor Gyokeres.

  Deco affirmed the club’s faith in current number nine Robert Lewandowski, who is in form with 14 goals and two assists after 13 games in LaLiga this season.

  Gyokeres, by comparison, has 16 goals and one assist in the Primeira Liga while, despite a dip in form, Erling Haaland has 12 goals in the Premier League this season.

  Barcelona, however, are “happy” with Lewandowski and hope he will lead the line in the Catalonian capital for another season at least.

  "First we have to know whether Haaland is what we want for the future. We don't know that now,” Deco told El Mundo Deportivo.

  "At the moment we don't want any 'nine.' We have Robert. We are not planning anything with any 'nine.' It's not a priority because we have to focus on this season."

  Lewandowski leads the Barcelona squad for shots (38) and shots on target (26) in the league, indicating the 36-year-old is still maintaining pace at the top level.

  He leads the league for goals with Real Madrid’s Vinicius Junior coming closest to matching his tally, trailing by six goals.

  "I think it's very difficult to find a striker like Robert nowadays. There are one or two of this level. Maybe Haaland or another one. There are not so many of this level available,” explained Deco.

  "But we are not going to get hung up on finding any striker now because we are going to focus first on what Robert can do. I surely think he is happy to be here. He is a winner and if we have a big season I think he will want to stay.

  "We want Robert to continue to be happy, to score goals and to stay at least one more season."

  While the Pole is without a goal in two games, Barcelona’s rumoured target Gyokeres has not faltered.

  The Swede caught global attention in Sporting CP’s recent Champions League clash with Manchester City, producing a hat-trick to help his team to a shock 4-1 win.

  He accumulated an expected goals (xG) total of 2.41 in the match, accounting for most of Sporting's overall 2.87xG.

  "Gyokeres is a good player. He has been scoring goals for some time in Portugal. We know him as we know others, but it's not a priority for us right now,” said Deco.

  "When the time comes to make a decision and I have to make it because I am the one at the club, we will consider the options. But I don't think it's the right time to talk about any player."

• Cabal becomes second Juventus defender to suffer ACL injury

  Juventus' Juan Cabal will undergo surgery after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee, intensifying the Serie A giants' defensive injury crisis.

  The 23-year-old was forced to return to Turin after injuring his knee during training with the Colombia national team ahead of their World Cup qualifiers against Uruguay and Ecuador.

  Cabal is the second Juventus defender to suffer an ACL injury this season after Gleison Bremer, who hurt his left knee during their 3-2 Champions League win over RB Leipzig last month.

  Cabal has so far made nine appearances across all competitions this season.

  Juventus are sixth in the Serie A standings and 11th in the Champions League's new-look league phase.

• 'I have nothing against him' - Leao brushes off rumours of feud with Fonseca

  Rafael Leao has shrugged off suggestions of a feud between him and Milan head coach Paulo Fonseca despite starting fewer games in recent weeks.

  The winger started three consecutive Serie A matches on the bench after the last international break, coming on to make substitute appearances in two of those.

  He returned to the starting line-up for their 3-3 draw with Cagliari last time out, netting twice in the first half to bring his tally up to three goals for the season, and 50 overall in Serie A.

  Leao has also provided three assists in the Italian top-flight, while he has both attempted (36) and completed (24) the most dribbles of any Milan player in the competition.

  There were reports of tension between Leao and Fonseca due to the former's lack of playing time in recent weeks, but he brushed off the idea.

  "These things happen during the season, I have nothing against him, and he has nothing against me," Leao said while at Portugal's training ground.

  "It's all settled. I don't like being on the bench, obviously, but he makes the decisions and I, as a player, have to respect the coach.

  "When I step onto the pitch, I have to do my best to help the team."

  Leao has also impressed with performances in the Champions League this season, especially against Real Madrid in a 3-1 win, as he registered an assist for their third goal.

  However, he has also come under criticism in Italy, with one pundit claiming he has a poor work ethic, suggesting he only puts in effort in big games.

  "Clearly, I do not agree with that," Leao added about the recent comments.

  "I have been having a great season at Milan but, like everyone else, there are ups and downs. The campaign has only just started. Look, I know that I am not the perfect player and sometimes I can do much better.

  "I am not shaken by this criticism. I have people who help me to improve and those are the ones I have to listen to. This criticism just spurs me on to respond on the pitch."