Barcelona have changed the way they approach the international transfer market, with Deco and scouting chief Joao Amaral leading a recruitment strategy built around finding young talent before the biggest clubs in Europe.

According to SPORT , the pair have identified a whopping 18 emerging players from abroad over the past three years as Barcelona look to establish an earlier presence in markets across Europe, Africa, South America and the United States.

The strategy is partly a response to the financial limitations that previously made it difficult for Barça to compete in major bidding wars for highly-rated prospects.

Barcelona’s economic problems meant the club often had to watch other European giants move first for some of the continent’s most promising young players.

Deco and Amaral have instead chosen a different route. Rather than waiting until a prospect becomes a recognised name, Barça are attempting to identify players much earlier in their development and secure them before their value rises significantly.

That approach has already produced a sizeable group of recruits.

Barcelona have been pretty smart in the transfer market. (Picture credit: x/@FCBarcelona)

Mika Faye, Mamadou Mbacke, Noah Darvich, David Oduro, Aziz Issah, Ibrahim Diarra, Juwensley Onstein, Ajay Tavares, Patricio Pacifico, Lovro Chelfi, Hamza Abdelkarim, Roony Bardghji, Mirza Catovic, Dany Freire and Jesse Bisiwu are among the players brought into the club through this wider strategy.