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So Eric Garcia has convinced Xavi to start and make Piqué forget

BarcelonaWhen he had not yet made his debut with the first team of Manchester City, Eric Garcia was already training to be a coach, assisting and learning with the technicians of the club’s academy citizen. His concern for football goes far beyond his role as a player. Before leaving the Barça squad to go to the English city on a round trip, he had been captain of all the grassroots teams he had participated in. His trainers speak highly of him, as well as the trainers he’s had recently. Pep Guardiola heaped all kinds of praise on Eric and wanted him to stay in Manchester, but the Martorell central defender has always been with Barça and his wish was firm: not renew with the English team, run out of contract, ignore of PSG’s siren songs – which, as reported by ARA, existed – and return home.

His first season was marked by irregular performance, like the whole team in general in a year of transition that started with Ronald Koeman and ended with Xavi Hernández trying to re-lead a set full of shortcomings. That is over, the team has been strengthened and Eric has started the season at a great level. He has played every possible minute in the League despite having more competition. In the pre-season he made a very good impression, especially in tandem with newcomer Andreas Christensen. A tonic that has continued at the start of the official competition. The Martorell defender is the Barcelona player who has served the most passes (189, with a success rate of 92%), two more than Pedri, and the second Barça player who has recovered the most balls (17), only surpassed by Busquets (18).

At only 21 years old, Eric has won the title for the moment, although it is true that Jules Kounde was not entered until the third day and that the emergencies at right back have moved the French player to the side, as well as Ronald Araujo. The fact that he is so young means that the coaching staff insist that he is “in training”, while highlighting his “maturity” and an essential condition for any footballer: “He has gained confidence”. Maturity is not a futile term, because from the Ciutat Esportiva de Sant Joan Despí they consider Eric Garcia a much more mature footballer for his age, as is also the case with Pedri. Of the new generation of Blaugrana youngsters, they are the two players with the most veteran mentality in terms of reading and understanding the game.

In fact, even when he was playing for City, the central defender liked to analyze the warm-up of the rivals before the matches, to have clues as to what the approach of the team he would face would be. At the same time, he is a player who likes to talk to his teammates and tidy up the team on the pitch, as he himself confessed in an interview with The Athletic. “When I was little, I used to go to see the rival teams to analyze the striker that would be found the following week”, he recalled in a conversation with ARA Franc Artiga, who trained him when they were both members of the Blaugrana squad. “When Eric is criticized, his youth is not taken into account. Managing the defensive aspect also depends on experience. As he acquires more, he will counteract with anticipation the lack of forcefulness in the disputes”, argued the Cambrils striker.

Specific physical work

In addition, Eric Garcia is a footballer who takes care of himself with care and great professionalism, despite his youth, club sources tell ARA. While other teammates may find the recommended gym routines to be lazier, he applies himself and doesn’t negotiate that part that helps him complement his physical strength. He is also a player who knows his body very well and when he notices that he may have some discomfort or physical problem, he knows how to detect it in time and communicate it to the relevant medical officials. Maturity, gaining confidence, a privileged reading of the game, having trained at Barça and Manchester City, work and healthy routines are the main keys with which, at the age of 21, Eric has convinced Xavi to have an important role in the squad and start to forget Gerard Piqué, who has gone from playing everything to watching the team from the bench.

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