Abidal opens up on Denis and Malcom situation

"You never know," Abidal said on Tuesday. "We are always working internally and there are decisions that the manager will take. We are happy with the squad but there are always possibilities. The players that have less minutes could stay, or they could leave. We will evaluate every scenario."

This statement has been mirrored by Ernesto Valverde at his press conference ahead of the Wednesday game against Sevilla in the Copa del Rey: "It's true that there's a possibility for Denis to leave, but I don't know what will happen in the end. Based on the information I have, I don't know. Until January 31 I can't rule anything out, but we can't be left without enough players, either."

Denis Suarez and Malcom are the two players who can follow Munir El Haddadi who left the club earlier as both attackers are surrounded by rumours this winter. The Spaniard has been linked with Arsenal with the Gunners' head coach Unai Emery being eager to reunite with the 24-year-old at the Emirates.

Meanwhile, Malcom is believed to be a transfer target of numerous clubs from the Premier League, Serie A and Chinese Super League. 

"What the player wants is to play a lot of games and to score goals," Barca boss said on Malcom's situation last week. "That's what the manager wants, too. He has to demonstrate that he can earn his place, that he can score goals -- the same as everyone else."

"We want to see his quality on the pitch. I don't ask anything different of him to anyone else, just that he proves his quality and is decisive. That's what we expect from him -- and that he helps us when we don't have the ball," concluded Valverde.