When a team is going through a period of transition or renovation, oftentimes a lot of youngsters and academy players are given importance. Barcelona did it once before back in the early 2000s and the La Masia academy did not fail the club as they produced some of the best footballers in the world at that time. Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and Carles Puyol were all products of La Masia. Thus, it is no surprise that Xavi trusts the academy a lot and youth is the base of all his plans for the club.
Barcelona at the moment have a plethora of young talent waiting to prove their worth on the pitch. The youngsters, some who have graduated from the academy and some who have been bought from other clubs, have become the face of the club. Pedri, a player from Las Palmas, became one of the most important players for the Catalans last season and he even won the Golden Boy award this year. He is currently one of the best young assets for both Barca and Spain. Gavi is another sensation who has risen to the surface this year and Xavi has already made it clear that he wants Barca to secure Gavi’s future with the club.
Barcelona boss Xavi Hernandez on youth leading the way
He said in a recent press conference,
"“We have to renew his contract right now.”“If necessary, we will all put in some money. Along with Ansu [Fati], Pedri, [Ronald] Araujo, Abde [Ezzalzouli], Nico [Gonzalez] and others, he must be the base of the club’s future. We can’t lose these players.”Source ESPN"
This just shows the amount of trust Xavi has in these players and the youngsters have been repaying this trust as well by performing consistently. We must also not forget to thank Ronald Koeman for bringing some of these players to the forefront of the conversation and even giving Pedri and Araujo their breakthrough seasons. Now is the time for a rebuild and with a steady pace of development, Barca can be on the top of the mountain again, very soon.
Which Barca youngster are you most excited to see this season?