Hansi Flick responds to rumoured Chelsea interest in Marc Casado | OneFootball

Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has confirmed that homegrown midfielder Marc Casado is still part of the club's plans, despite a recent preference for Frenkie de Jong and rumours of outside transfer interest.

La Masia graduate Casado has enjoyed a breakout season with the first-team, capitalising on an injury crisis earlier in the campaign to cement himself and rack up 30 appearances so far.

But while he initially benefitted from Gavi and De Jong both missing the start of the season to finish recuperating from respective ACL and ankle injuries, Casado has seen the competition for places ramp up more recently now that both are fully fit and firing.

De Jong has started three of Barcelona's five La Liga games so far in 2025 and replaced Casado at half-time in the other two. Casado has been afforded only two minutes in the last two games.

There have been rumours of transfer interest from Chelsea, who have continued to target young talent across the world as part of their recruitment strategy under BlueCo ownership. But Flick seems satisfied with Casado and hasn't deliberately dropped the Spain international.

Frenkie de Jong's resurgence has taken away from Casado's chances / David Ramos/GettyImages

"He has not done anything wrong. I am also speaking with him," Flick explained.

"At the moment it is like this because Frenkie 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.

"It's not a case of: when one plays, it is something against the other. Everyone has their job. We are one team, and when everyone plays, they have to play well, it's a normal thing."

Casado signed a new contract with Barcelona last June, before he had made the permanent jump to first-team level, that will run until 2028. That deal includes a €100m (£83m) release clause.