Barcelona graduate Riqui Puig broke up about his former manager, Xavi Hernandez, as well as the club’s treatment of some players. He continued to complain about how things had changed since Xavi’s arrival and that he had just started two La Liga games under himself and only 11 league games during his career at the club.
Puig received a lot of love and uproar from Barça fans after his exciting academy career, but had to leave the club because he didn’t have time to play. He was recently acquired by MLS side LA Galaxy and is again looking to shine and help his team achieve big frontiers in the league.
Puig has played 57 times for both major and minor teams of Barcelona, who joined the club in 2013 at the age of 14. He had recently interviewed Fox about the club’s treatment of him and the club’s trajectory. He asked De Jong to cut his salary in half or look for another club.
Former Barcelona player Gary Lineker also criticized the club for treating De Jong “like a piece of meat”. Puig made his debut for his new club, LA Galaxy, in a 3-3 draw against the Seattle Sounders. He also told Fox, “The truth is, it’s been a pretty tough couple of months because I’ve never seen the club leave players in Barcelona and not let them go on tour with them.”
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Riqui Puig had to train alone while his teammates were playing in Los Angeles.
“Maybe I misunderstand the club’s situation and they want to pressure the players to leave but it should have been done in another way. The truth is it was painful to be alone in Barcelona training with the four teammates who were with me.”
He continued, “Yes, big disappointment. And even more so after seven years at the club. This is also a coach who has been at the club for a long time. It hurt me so much to be here in Barcelona while all my teammates were playing in Los Angeles. It was a very complicated situation, sometimes you have to decide. I do not share the thoughts of the club.”
Ronald Koeman also had the opportunity to talk about Xavi’s management style: “I like people who work to improve every day and take opportunities with both hands. Sometimes it’s not just about quality. There may be players in training who are not doing enough for the coach to allow for the opportunity.”
Former Barcelona player Cesc Fabregas praised Puig and compared him to club legend Andres Iniesta: “For example, if the coaches trust him, he can be like Riqui Iniesta. I know it’s a big word to compare him to Andres but such a player could cost a fortune in today’s market. I’m sure Riqui has what it takes to be successful, he just needs to have the right attitude and keep improving.”
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