barcelona Coach Hansi Flick has invested a lot of time in this Pedro ‘Dro’ Fernandez When the 18-year-old midfielder told them he was leaving the club, they couldn’t believe it.
Flick took Dro on a preseason tour of Barcelona last summer and lent him his hand LaLiga For the first time in September, and for the first time uefa champions league Start in October. However, after experiencing that taste of football at the top level, Drow was left wanting more. And with minutes barely coming into the first team, the teenager made the surprise decision to play regular football elsewhere, sending the club into a tizzy.
This week, Dro’s transfer Paris Saint Germain This was confirmed, with sources telling ESPN that the French club also paid slightly more than his €6 million release clause to sign him. That clause meant there was nothing Barça could do to stop the move, which hurt even more given the involvement of the club’s former player and coach Luis Enrique, who is now PSG manager.
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Club sources told ESPN that Drou’s unexpected departure angered Flick. When the news broke the German coach initially said he did not want to talk about the issue until the transfer “happened”. However, in the same press conference, he mentioned the influence of other people around the player, the confidence he shows and his willingness to only work with people who want to stay at the club.
“If you want to play with Barcelona, you have to do it with all your heart, 100%,” He said. “Everyone else, I don’t want.”
Flick, who usually remained quiet in public, was speaking while the news was still raw; Dro had simply informed him that week that he would be leaving. Club sources told ESPN that Flick had asked them to consider it. But the next day, Drow reiterated the same stance, stating that the decision was based solely on football reasons, and not financial ones.
Flick ordered him to leave the first-team dressing room; From then until his move to PSG was confirmed, he trained alone. In parallel, Drou’s agent – former Barça midfielder Iván de la Peña, who is also Luis Enrique’s agent and close friend – informed sporting director Deco about the decision, who was equally surprised.
Barça had planned to offer Dro a new contract. They waited for him to turn 18, which he did after 18 Spanish Supercopa final victory real Madrid First in January. On the return flight from Saudi Arabia, the club shared a video of teammate Rafinha As the squad sang “Happy Birthday”, he was given a cake. That was the last time he was seen in Barcelona colours.
Sources close to the talks said that new contract talks never really got off the ground, adding that Barça should bear some of the blame because they could have acted faster, knowing how attainable a €6 million provision was for Europe’s biggest teams. Barca president Joan Laporta dismissed this by claiming on Sunday that a renewal deal was close.
Dro left after making five appearances for Barça, although he had not made any appearances since coming off the bench. Atletico Madrid On 2 December. Sources close to the player said he felt his path to regular football at Barça was closed.
Flick played a system with two deep central midfielders and a number 10, which did not suit his best qualities. The same sources said that Dro is most comfortable as one of two advanced midfielders in front of a holding midfielder. Even as the number 10 in Flick’s formation, minutes were not flowing. fermin lopez, dani olmo And Rafinha was among those who were ahead of him. Drow was also widely used, but sources said that 149 minutes of football – and just 88 touches of the ball – did not represent blind confidence in him on the part of the coaching staff.
Sources close to the player told ESPN that, during several conversations with Luis Enrique, Dro was convinced that PSG would be a better suit for him at this stage of his career. The reigning European champions were not the only club after them: Manchester City, chelsea, borussia dortmund And Bayern Munich Everyone had shown interest earlier. When news leaked that he was leaving, sources said that various teams called de la Peña to check on the situation; Clubs that had previously considered a deal impossible became reawakened to the possibility of signing Drow. Sources close to the player insisted that the PSG deal was not closed at the time, but it is now clear that negotiations had already progressed.
Dro’s advancement was accelerated last summer when Arnau Blanco was promoted to Flick’s staff after years in the academy, where he had trained Dro. His enthusiasm about the player rubbed off on Flick and, while club sources said it was always a matter of sooner or later, it accelerated the young player’s progress.
Dro joined Barca in 2022 at the age of 14 from Galician side Val Minor – where Thiago Alcantara also played. He was initially known as “Dro” because his brother couldn’t pronounce his name, but it stuck given the number of other Pedros he played with over the years. Real Madrid had also been alerted to his talent, but sources close to his transfer to Barça said los blancos “Slept” when the deal was completed.
There are some players who can be compared easily. Drow is one of them. Val Minor coach Javier Roxo told ESPN: “I have never seen a person as technical as Thiago.” [Alcántara]But in terms of vision, Dro is probably ahead of him.” Meanwhile, Luis Pérez Barreiro, another former Val Minor coach, compared him to club legend Andrés Iniesta, while the current star Pedri Earlier, he had declared Dro, who came to Barça, as his favorite player.
Another coach who worked with Dro compared him to Dro brazil Legend and Ballon d’Or winner, Kaká. He told ESPN: “Drou’s understanding of the game is way above average. He always emerged as a different kind of player. I always saw him as similar to Kaká, even though he played for Real Madrid and AC Milan [not Barça]”
Dro, whose Galician father played amateur football and whose mother is from the Philippines, announced himself with a spectacular strike in the preseason that soon led to his competitive debut in LaLiga. After this the first Champions League started Olympiacoswhere he scored a goal for Fermin becoming the second youngest player to provide an assist in the competition.
He becomes La Masia’s latest highly-rated graduate to leave Barca at a young age. Many seek opportunities away from Barcelona. Some – like Gerard Piqué, Cesc Fabregas, eric garcia And Olmo – finally returned. others – especially Jordi Maboula And, to some extent, Ilaix Moriba – Never reach expected level. Meanwhile the jury is still out on the choice xavi simmons (now in Tottenham Hotspur) And mark guiu (Chelsea) in reference to their final ceiling in the game.
Time will tell which group Dro falls into, but PSG are getting one of the most promising youngsters through Barca’s academy in the last five years. You only have to look at Flick’s reaction to see what a huge loss this young player is for the club.
