2 weeks Ago
On Sunday night at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan , Pedri proved once again that he’s the best midfielder in Europe right now. A collective blip notwithstanding, the 22-year-old has been one of Barca’s most consistent performers in 24/25, and when the player of the season chatter comes around - as it soon will - the Canary Islander certainly can’t be discounted. Caps have been routinely doffed this season for Raphinha’s goalscoring excellence, Pau Cubarsi’s continuing emergence as a solid centre-back, Lamine Yamal’s breathtaking skills and Robert Lewandowski’s economy in front of goal.
Photo by Eric Verhoeven/Soccrates/Getty Images The cheer leaders for Pedri have been a little quieter when, quite frankly, they should’ve been shouting his name from the roof tops. He is the tempo setter, the metronome and the conduit through which everything flows, and his importance therefore cannot be understated. During his post-match interview, Pedri was coy about his contribution both in the game against Sevilla and more generally across the season, however, the stats bear out the fact that he’s enjoying a vintage campaign.
The five chances he created in the match, which equalled his most in a Spanish top-flight game, was also more than his team-mates combined and the same as the entire Sevilla squad. His assist for Fermin just a minute after the restart was his third in the last five matches, which is as many as he made in the previous 39 games. In terms of assists overall, that’s six in 35 games across all competitions too, which equals his best in a single campaign (6 in 52 games in 20/21).
When you consider that, theoretically, he’s still about five years away from his supposed peak as a player, the sky really is the limit for Pedri. Photo by Jose Breton/Pics Action/NurPhoto via Getty Images From Hansi Flick’s perspective too, he must be an absolute dream to manage. Doesn’t hit the headlines for anything other than his football excellence, doesn’t appear to have an ego on the football pitch, works hard in training and gives every last drop of effort in games.
When we talk about role models in the game too, it isn’t just for what they’re able to do with a football, but how they manage to inspire the younger generation in other ways. Pedri is an absolute gem and long may he continue to drive Barca on to bigger and better things..
