At the start of July, Xavi selected 12 players from the Barcelona youth ranks to train with the first-team squad, seven of those players were selected to tour with the senior side as they flew to the USA. But who are the La Masia 7?
We’re going to take a look at all seven prospects who are hoping to follow in the footsteps of some of the game’s best players.
Andrés Iniesta, Lionel Messi, Xavi, Busquets, Gerard Piqué, Cesc Fàbregas, Carles Puyol, Jordi Alba and Pep Guardiola, we could go on and on, all graduated from the La Masia academy.
Regarded as one of the best academies in football, it rivalled the Ajax academy as the preeminent European production line, along with the Benfica campus.
La Masia is an old converted Catalan farmhouse, and while it no longer houses the academy prospects, the barca academy will always be known as La Masia.
"“The player who has passed through La Masia has something different to the rest, it’s a plus that only comes from having competed in a Barcelona shirt from the time you were a child.” – Pep Guardiola"
Let’s get started with the bright stars of tomorrow, currently touring with the senior side.