Chelsea midfielder Deco feels his decision to join the Blues rather than opting for Inter Milan has been justified.
Inter were keen to attract Deco to Italy after being asked by José Mourinho to sign the player that he had worked with for two and a half seasons at Porto.
However, the Portugal international decided instead to choose London, joining former national team coach Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge.
"Felipão is a very serious man who doesn't like jokes, not even in groups, but he is a very good professional and a good person," Deco told Brazilian magazine Fut Lance.
"Analysing the offers, the Chelsea one fitted in better with what I wanted, the challenge was more interesting.
"Both Mourinho and Scolari have their own way of doing things. Mourinho can seem to be arrogant from a distance, but he is an excellent professional who understands his players very well."
Deco then reflected on his four-year stint at Barcelona, who offloaded him and Ronaldinho following their second successive trophyless season.
"I simply believed that it was the right time to leave.
"The problem in Spanish football is that everything is very pressurised, therefore if the team goes a year without winning, the situation becomes harder and if it goes to two years, it becomes impossible.
"The demands fall more heavily on the most important player, which can be good, but also makes things more difficult."
However, the 31-year-old insists that he only has happy memories of his time at the Nou Camp.
"That chapter has finished for me, but it is good to say that I never had any problems with anyone; not the players, the directors nor the fans.
"I am very happy about the time I spent with Barcelona. If I had to choose between Portugal, England or Barcelona, I would choose Barcelona, which is a very nice city because it is small and doing anything is much easier."
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Inter were keen to attract Deco to Italy after being asked by José Mourinho to sign the player that he had worked with for two and a half seasons at Porto.
However, the Portugal international decided instead to choose London, joining former national team coach Luiz Felipe Scolari at Stamford Bridge.
"Felipão is a very serious man who doesn't like jokes, not even in groups, but he is a very good professional and a good person," Deco told Brazilian magazine Fut Lance.
"Analysing the offers, the Chelsea one fitted in better with what I wanted, the challenge was more interesting.
"Both Mourinho and Scolari have their own way of doing things. Mourinho can seem to be arrogant from a distance, but he is an excellent professional who understands his players very well."
Deco then reflected on his four-year stint at Barcelona, who offloaded him and Ronaldinho following their second successive trophyless season.
"I simply believed that it was the right time to leave.
"The problem in Spanish football is that everything is very pressurised, therefore if the team goes a year without winning, the situation becomes harder and if it goes to two years, it becomes impossible.
"The demands fall more heavily on the most important player, which can be good, but also makes things more difficult."
However, the 31-year-old insists that he only has happy memories of his time at the Nou Camp.
"That chapter has finished for me, but it is good to say that I never had any problems with anyone; not the players, the directors nor the fans.
"I am very happy about the time I spent with Barcelona. If I had to choose between Portugal, England or Barcelona, I would choose Barcelona, which is a very nice city because it is small and doing anything is much easier."
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