Barcelona“It’s the happiest day of my life.” This is what Aleix Garrido said in Elche after making his debut with the Barça first team. This 19-year-old midfielder from Ripoll was realizing the dream he had always had since he signed for the Barcelona team when he was 12. His, and the dream of all the players who entered La Masia one day or another. “When they told me I was training with the first team, I almost didn’t believe it. Days go by, you’re still there, and then the call-up appears and you see your name. Those are the hours you keep thinking and asking yourself: “What am I doing here?” And when they told me to enter, everything became clear to me,” he said after the match.
Garrido, who made his debut with a thrashing against the Primera squad, expands the list of players from the youth team who have made their debut with the bigs under the orders of Xavi Hernández: there are now ten. But having arrived here is no guarantee of anything. Now comes the most complicated part: consolidating. A task that very few are able to do.
La Masia has always generated debate in the sports area. The training model is undeniable, and between the change of management team and the financial limitations, the Blaugrana leadership is clear that it must promote the footballers created at home. However, as they often warn from the noble offices, “not everyone who plays in the lower categories has the talent and ability to play with a team that has the challenge and the obligation to win all the titles”. For this reason, highs and lows are frequent in Sant Joan Despí. As it is also common for footballers who end up debuting in the elite have to take a step to the side.
When they told me I was training with the first team, I almost couldn’t believe it. Days go by, you’re still there, and then the summons appears. These are hours when you don’t stop thinking and asking yourself: “What am I doing here?” ”
Alex Garrido
Xavi has been in charge for a year and a half, but at the moment none of the ten players who have made their debut with him have established themselves as first team starters. The only exception would be that of Ángel Alarcón, who enters the call-ups but is not getting minutes. In fact, none of them have a first team card, with the exception of Iñaki Peña, who returned this summer from a loan to the Turkish Galatasaray and made his official debut in November, playing in the Champions League field of Viktoria Pilsen. The goalkeeper, who lives in the shadow of Ter Stegen, had already played games in previous seasons, but they were always friendlies. To find the other footballers who have passed through La Masia and who have established themselves, you have to look before the return of Xavi Hernández as coach: Gavi, Ansu or Balde. Araujo and Pedri would go in this line, but one trained at the Uruguayan Huracán Rivera and the other at Las Palmas.
Ilias Akhomach, the first
The first player of the Xavi era to debut was Ilias Akhomach, who curiously played in Xavi’s first game on the bench, the derby against Espanyol last season (20/11/21). He started and was substituted at half-time. But the striker did not have continuity. He was only called up in six more games and would only play a few minutes in two of them. This year he lives with the B team and has not yet played a game with Xavi.
Another striker, Ferran Jutglà, is the one who came closest to consolidating himself. He made his debut against Osasuna (12/12/21) and went on a streak of nine consecutive games in which he scored two goals. But with the reinforcements that arrived in January, the striker of Sant Julià de Vilatorta disappeared from the map and returned to the subsidiary. In the summer he would sign for Bruges in exchange for around five million euros. In the Belgian league he is having a remarkable performance: 37 games, 11 goals and seven assists.
Last season he left three more debuts. All of them, ephemeral. Like that of Mika Mármol (15/05/22), who only played one minute against Getafe on the penultimate day of the League. It was a reward for his career at La Masia, since he left the club in the summer and signed for Gerard Piqué’s Andorra. Nor did Álvaro Sanz, who made his debut against Mallorca in January (02/01/22), have much better luck. He played three games in total, 43 minutes. This season he did not play a role and in the winter he moved to Mirandés de Segona. Estanis Pedrola also made his debut in that duel against Mallorca, in which he spent 10 minutes on the pitch. Since then he has appeared in four Xavi calls, but without having more minutes.
This year, apart from Iñaki Peña and Aleix Garrido, three other footballers have made their debuts. Marc Casadó and Chadi Riad made their debuts in November, against Viktoria Pilsen (01/11/22) and Osasuna (08/11/22), respectively. But it was the only match they played with Xavi. On the other hand, the one who has continuity is Ángel Alarcón, a winger who made his debut in January, in the Cup, against Ceuta. Since then he has been part of the first team, he has entered all the calls and played four games. Of course, very few minutes: 29 in total.
Ten debuts, to which we must add those produced with Ronald Koeman on the bench, which serve to demonstrate that La Masia continues to be a good training school for professional players. But Barça’s demands are unique and with what you learn in the Ciutat Esportiva, it is not always enough to succeed at Camp Nou.