Barcelona midfielder, Pedri, who is considered a key pillar in coach Hansi Flick’s squad, talks about his current career and his ambitions with the Catalan team.
Pedri is currently absent from the Spanish national team due to his recovery from a tear in the biceps femoris muscle in his left leg, an injury he sustained at the end of last October during the “Clasico” match.
In statements reported by the Spanish newspaper “Marca,” Pedri said: “I have gone through a big change since I arrived at Barcelona, yes, it feels like yesterday and it’s been five and a half years, in this time I have learned a lot from my colleagues and leaders who I have worked with, and yes, I now feel that I am in a leadership position within the team.”
Regarding his love for Barcelona, Pedri explained: “When I was born, they dressed me in the Barça shirt, my grandfather and father were Barcelona fans to the death, and they passed this passion on to me, I am a Barcelona fan lucky enough to play for his team, I am living a dream and I realize that every day when I wake up.”
Regarding the coaches he has worked with, he started with Ronald Koeman, saying: “I will always be grateful to Koeman because he allowed me to play for the first time, trusting me when I was nothing, and in turn Xavi helped us revive the passion, and won a league that no one expected, in addition, he is a legend of the club who helped us a lot and trusted the youth.”
He continued: “With Flick, we have taken another step in the competitive side, to try to fight for all the titles, he has that German seriousness that distinguishes him, he is serious when it’s time to be serious, and when it’s time to laugh, he makes us laugh a lot, he usually deals with things calmly, but it’s better not to anger him.”
Pedri touched on playing alongside Frenkie de Jong: “We are playing together much more now than before and it shows, you probably don’t see from the outside how good Frenkie is, but he has incredible quality and a lot of power to get past the lines, I am very happy to have him by my side.”
The Barcelona midfielder praised his teammate Eric Garcia, saying: “He is a friend, when we signed him, I already knew his level, he is one of the best center backs in the world at passing the ball and he can play as a full-back, center back, pivot, mentally, he gives his best, he is smart, and knows how to position himself in the ideal place, there was a moment when the fans stopped trusting him, but they now realize the level he has.”
Looking at Lamine Yamal, Pedri reported: “He is an incredible player, at his age, few players are able to do what he does, he is very mature, and despite the talk about his private life, he knows what he is doing at all times, he carries the pressure he has to carry with complete naturalness and he is only eighteen years old.”
He commented on occupying 11th place in the Ballon d’Or: “Well, that’s the position I left after the vote, I accept it and I will try to finish in a higher position next year.”
Regarding the possibility of winning the Ballon d’Or, the Spanish midfielder explained: “I hope so, all football players dream of winning the Ballon d’Or, whoever says no is lying, it’s complicated, but you never know.”
Regarding the competition in the Champions League, he commented: “I prefer the collective award to the individual one, I prefer Barcelona, which is my team, to win rather than me getting an award alone, and yes, this season is one of the seasons where I see the greatest opportunities for the team in the Champions League, last year we were close to reaching the final, and we will give our all this year, because it is a competition we all want to win.”
He concluded with a promise he will fulfill if he wins the Champions League: “I won’t shave my head completely because my mother won’t let me, she tells me: stop doing stupid things (laughs), I don’t know what I can promise, what is certain is that my teammates and I will give our lives to get it.”
Rafinha’s recovery
Barcelona star Rafinha continues to recover well from the injury he suffered on September 26, in the middle third of the biceps femoris muscle in his right thigh. Despite his improved condition, he has not yet joined the team’s collective training. Last Thursday, he returned to perform individual recovery exercises, part of which include exercises on the field.
Expectations indicate that if the progress continues at the same positive pace, he will join the rest of the team next week. The player had previously suffered a setback that forced him to miss the Clasico match that was held last October.
Barcelona is being very careful with all its injured players, especially at this time with Rafinha, due to the Brazilian international’s imminent return to the team a few weeks ago, and then suffering a setback in the injury.
