Barcelona boss Xavi says ‘no player in the world with as much talent as Pedri’ after win against Valencia
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Published 20/02/2022 at 21:15 GMT
Having come off the bench with half an hour to go, Pedri lashed in Barcelona’s fourth goal of the game from long range to round off a productive afternoon for Xavi’s side. Though his strike was later credited to Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang owing to an almost imperceptible deflection off the former Arsenal forward’s back, the teenager earned rave reviews from his manager afterwards.
‘Pedri is the best in the world in his position’ - Xavi hails teenager
Xavi has claimed that there is “no player in the world with as much talent as Pedri” following the teenager’s impressive performance in Barcelona’s 4-1 win against Valencia at the Mestalla.
Having come off the bench with half an hour to go, Pedri lashed in Barca’s fourth goal of the game from long range to round off a productive afternoon for Xavi’s side. Two well-taken goals for Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and a tap-in for Frenkie de Jong had already put the visitors in a strong position to take all three points, but their hosts had briefly threatened a comeback after Carlos Soler’s diving header to make it 3-1.
Though Pedri’s strike was later credited to Aubameyang owing to an almost imperceptible deflection off the former Arsenal forward’s back, the teenager earned rave reviews from his manager afterwards. As reported by ESPN, Xavi said: “There is no player in the world with as much talent as Pedri – and he is only 19!
“He is absolutely superlative. How he turns, his understanding of space and time and the fact he uses both feet. It is amazing to have him in the team and we must take care of him.
“He came on for half an hour and was important. He makes the difference, in how we play, in the box... he wins balls back. We demanded he shoot more and now he has three goals [since coming back from injury].
“Look, he’s not a normal player. There are very few like him. Perhaps, at his age, he is already the best in the world in his position.”
Xavi was also full of praise for Aubameyang, who scored his first goal for his new club after 23 minutes and ended the afternoon with a fortuitous hat-trick. “Aubameyang has scored goals throughout his career,” he said.
“He’s good in space. He’s mature, intelligent, humble and positive. I am delighted with him. Those goals today will give him a lot of confidence.”
Barcelona remain fourth in La Liga, ahead of Atletico Madrid in fifth on goal difference having played one game fewer than Diego Simeone’s men.
“It’s really important, a big win in a very difficult stadium like Valencia so we are very happy,” added Xavi.
“We are happy because we work together really, really hard. We don’t play excellent, OK, but we play well and we dominate, especially in the first half, but not too much in the second half.
“But we suffer, and we have to suffer sometimes. So I’m very happy for the team and for the three points.”
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