Xavi Hernandez has called on the Spanish national team to be more cautious with Pau Cubarsi’s gametime than they were with Pedri’s.
17-year-old Cubarsi has become a regular for Barcelona since the turn of the year, thoroughly impressing in his nine starts in all competitions thus far. The centre-back has impressed so much, in fact, that he was named in Spain’s senior squad by Luis de le Fuente for the upcoming March internationals.
While Cubarsi’s breakthrough in senior football has been exciting, it has also brought up worrying comparisons with Barcelona midfielder Pedri’s maiden year in the Barcelona and Spain set-ups. Due to Euro 2020 and the Summer Olympics falling in the same year, the dynamic midfielder infamously featured in eight competitions for both club and country – playing a whopping 75 games in total between 2020 and 2022.
That heavy workload on the youngster has been seen by many as the key reason Pedri has since struggled to stay fit, suffering eight separate hamstring injuries – including one which has recently sidelined him.
Speaking about Cubarsi’s Spain call-up, Barca boss Xavi has expressed his concern at the effects a similar workload could have on the centre-back ahead of a summer with both a European Championships and the Olympics to contend with:
“I am very happy that he is going with the senior team. He deserves it. He is performing at a very high level,” Xavi said.
“I hope that the ‘Pedri case’ is not repeated, but it is not something I can decide. He deserves to go with the national team, he is at a high level. We must also value De la Fuente’s bravery.”
The defender started for Barca once again on Sunday evening in La Blaugrana’s clash with fellow UEFA Champions League quarter-finalists at Estadio Civitas Metropolitano.
