There was a strange rumour doing the rounds last week that stated Barcelona had included Pedri in an offer to PSG for Mbappe, along with two other players. We didn’t report on it because quite frankly, it had absolutely no merit to it. Everybody close to the La Liga champions with legitimate sources laughed it off. Pedri was one of them.
The former Las Palmas player is arguably Barca’s most talented player, when he missed time with injury last year, the team didn’t look the same, lacking the cutting edge that he brings with his dribbling and vision.
He may not have found his best form this pre-season in the games against Arsenal, Real Madrid and AC Milan last night, but nobody would argue that he’s not vital to the success of Barcelona this year.
In an interview with La Vanguardia (via Mundo Deportivo), Pedri confirmed that he doesn’t listen to the outside noise and is focused instead on becoming the best player he can be with Madrid.
"I am calm and focused on the tour. I’m not aware of what they say on other sites. I only think about preparing for the preseason and enjoying Barça.I am not aware of the offers that come to me. That is received by my representatives. I tell them that if they want to listen, they should do it. And they will tell me but that I am focused on what is mine, which is to train, play and enjoy. But many things have to happen for me to leave this club. It would have to be very bad and very unpleasant. I see it as very unlikely, Barça is the club of my dreams and I want to stay for many more years."
When asked if he could confirm that he was staying, he simply replied: “For sure”.
I can’t say why Ousmane Dembele decided to leave Barca for a team who’ve never won the Champions League, but Xavi confirmed that the financial package on offer from PSG was out of the market, and something Barca couldn’t match…I’m willing to bet that had something to do with it.
By the same token, I’m not going to blame him if he’s chasing the money. For some players that’s vital, and maybe that’s the case for Dembele…but for some, they want more.
Pedri called Barcelona the team of his dreams and spoke about potentially becoming captain one day. For him to move, things would have to get very bad, and by all accounts Barcelona are working on a good recovery plan for their finances, and the atmosphere in the locker room is positive.