Barcelona sporting director Robert Fernandez has defended the club's decision to send young Croatian Alen Halilovic on a season-long loan to Sporting Gijon in the summer transfer window.

The 19-year-old was involved in Barca's preparations for the new season, but was sent on loan to Sporting towards the end of the window to continue his development.

The decision has been questioned amid Barca's recent injury crisis in the final third, but Fernandez has said that it was the right call to send the teenager to another La Liga club.

"Hopefully he comes back. He's playing and it takes time. He needs to improve. Sporting has been a good choice for him," Mundo Deportivo quotes Fernandez as saying.

Halilovic, who joined the Catalan outfit from Dinamo Zabreb in 2014, scored his first Sporting goal in their 2-1 win over Espanyol at the weekend.