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10 months ago
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Barcelona today are far from their glorious past. The period between 2010 and 2015 may just be the best period the club has ever witnessed, and it will be a long time before they come close to replicating such success once more.
The days of Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta, Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique still live long in the hearts of fans across the world.
One of the key members of the team in that period was Cesc Fabregas, who despite his grand stature in Spanish football, never quite hit his peak level at Catalonia.
Speaking in a recent interview with Julio Ocampo, the Barcelona legend spoke about the fated 2013-14 season at the club and recalled the painful draw against Atletico Madrid on the final match day that saw the title slip out of their hands.
“We were playing the last league match at Camp Nou against Atletico Madrid. Things are going very well for us with Alexis’s 1-0 goal. I was very happy because I was in a good moment in Barcelona and we were moments away from winning the title.”
“I felt If we had won that match, I would have stayed at Barcelona for many years. do you know why? Because it was difficult for me to settle in, at first they put me as a dummy striker, then as an advanced midfielder,” he added on his eventual departure from Barcelona that summer.
The Spanish legend then went on to speak about how Xavi’s success at Barcelona was one of the primary reasons why he never really got going at the club.
“I was never able to play in my position, which is the position in which they signed me with the idea of replacing Xavi in the future. The truth is that Xavi kept going and kept playing, so it was very difficult for me because we are talking about a phenomenon and a legend.”
Fabregas was then asked about his perception of the pressure of being the manager of Barcelona, a topic that several greats including Pep Guardiola, Luis Enrique and most recently Xavi have spoken about.
“I only felt that pressure you’re talking about as a player, as a Barcelona coach I wasn’t lucky enough to experience that. Obviously, there is pressure. It’s Barcelona, like Real Madrid, Bayern, United, Ferguson before, and City Pep now.”
“You have to win, and you also have to do it in a certain way because style is untouchable. It’s not me or Xavi who is saying that; I think the fans think the same thing. We have been taught this way since childhood,” he added on the Barcelona way.
Finally, the former Barcelona forward commented on the team’s run in the 2012-13 season where the team won La Liga but came up short on other fronts despite being favourites on all avenues.
“I don’t like to make excuses for anything but it was very difficult. We were getting over the shock of losing the genius Guardiola.”
“Then came Tito’s illness which was a very strong shock because he was a very popular and respected person. He coached Pique, Leo and me when we were 14. We had so much affection for him,” he added on Tito Vilanova.
Further commenting on the 2012-13 season, he revealed how Eric Abidal’s medical condition did not help the dressing room’s cause either, all contributing to the disappointing run.
“Then Abidal got sick, and it all came together: days, months and weeks that were very difficult on an emotional level because it’s not easy to see people you love suddenly disappear.”
“You hear stories, you ask questions but they don’t want to give you any explanations so they don’t destabilize your mental stability. It was difficult, but we achieved the 100-point league and it was not easy. It is true that Bayern destroyed us after that in the Champions League,” he concluded.
