Former Barcelona and Spain star Cesc Fabregas has spoken positively about his former club ahead of El Clasico, stating that they are playing better than last season under Xavi Hernandez.
Fabregas explained first that he had been highly impressed with Real Madrid star Jude Bellingham, who has taken Spanish football by storm.
“They had told me very good things about him. He is a boy with a very, very daring personality, an attitude that is out of the ordinary for his age.”
“From what they tell me about him, he has a very good mentality when it comes to competing, not being afraid of anything and is showing it. If you are in a club like Madrid or Barcelona you have to prove it every day or every three days, playing, competing… I see him as very capable of marking an era at Real Madrid.”
Cesc Fabregas on Jude Bellingham:
"He is a boy with a very, very daring personality, an attitude that is out of the ordinary for his age."
"From what they tell me about him, he has a very good mentality when it comes to competing."#HalaMadrid pic.twitter.com/E54p9mTZ6C
— Football España (@footballespana_) October 25, 2023
He also spoke to DAZN about Barcelona’s midfield, with special praise for Ilkay Gundogan.
“Pedri has a lot of quality. Gavi is a small warrior and Oriol is more defensive. Gundogan has a little more similarities with me. He has arrival, control, he handles the 8, 6 and 10 positions well. They are all great talents and I hope they all do well for the future of Spain.”
Given Barcelona are missing six players through injury, many are pessimistic about their chances of success against Los Blancos, but Fabregas was more positive about Xavi’s side this season than last.
“Barca’s best games of the season are coming against Madrid, because in the Super Cup or in La Liga.”
“They look at a more advanced level, competing better in the Champions League and being much more consistent in terms of play and results in La Liga. That consistency is missing, but in terms of the level of play, they look much more confident and constant to me, with a much clearer idea.”
Barcelona certainly seem to have less trouble breaking sides down this season, but in terms of pure numbers, their defensive statistics are calamitous comparatively. So far the Blaugrana have conceded 10 times, a number they did not his until three quarters of the way through last season.
