NEWS. . . BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Owen Hargreaves has named Pau Cubarsi as Barcelona’s future star after his performance in the 3-1 Champions League win over Napoli on Tuesday night.
Xavi drew 1-1 with Napoli in the first leg, but goals from Fermin Lopez, Joao Cancelo and Robert Lewandowski secured Barca’s place in Friday’s Champions League quarter-final draw.
Meanwhile, Cubarsi made his Champions League debut and the 17-year-old put in a performance against Napoli’s star striker Victor Osimhen.
“He [Cubarsi] is the star of the show,” Hargreaves told TNT Sports after Barcelona’s win.
“Yamal is another because it’s clearly the extreme. This kid [Cubarsi] picked passes for fun, he made it look so easy.
“He was physical when he needed to, for a Spanish centre-back to be so physical as opposed to someone like Osimhen is rare.
“I imagined his conscience, everything, he had just . . . 17 years old and in his first start he played ridiculously well.
“He’s a star and a star of the future.
“My idea is Yamal, he’s the most productive player on the pitch.
“He’s absolutely different to [Carles] Puyol, [Gerard] Pique is brilliant, but I think his long-distance passes are much better than those.
“It’s unique, I think it’s very special. To play like that in 17 years in a knockout game is rare. “
Former England manager Glenn Hoddle, who worked as a manager alongside Hargreaves for TNT Sports, added: “One performance, that.
“We watched him all night, we were very inspired by him.
“Look at it as a pass, the most sensible quality, if it’s Ronald Koeman at his best, unbelievable, in 17 years.
“As a defender, to have that maturity, to get ahead of people, his structure to lean on them, he was astute, at 17 he was betting way beyond his years. “
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