Setien's opinion on whether Barça have weakened their squad in January

Quique Setien has been left with a small squad following the closing of the January transfer window. However, the Barcelona coach says he prefers that to having a big squad, and also said the return of Ousmane Dembele to fitness will be like a 'new signing.'

"On the face of it, we could think that we have weakened the squad in January," Setien said. "We have fewer players now. But I will repeat: we also have the B team. These kids are ready. Several trained with us [on Saturday] that we're looking at. They can help us if needed. It's true that we could seem weaker, but you never know, the reality can be different sometimes. There's no point drawing conclusions now.

"Ousmane Dembele is going to be an extraordinary signing for us. He's back training and he's training really well. He's going to help us a lot, having him back is a huge incentive for everyone." 

The coach added, in reference to squad size that "many times what's hurt me is having to leave people out. I prefer to work with fewer people, that way everyone's switched on. Sometimes you run risks that way, but every player has a chance. To have motivated players is better than having kids who don't play. That can do more damage."