Reports emerged last month that Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez held talks with vice-captain Gerard Pique in order to sound out exactly how he was feeling about the upcoming season.
That was mostly framed as a conversation about his mental commitment to the cause, yet it was also to establish whether he felt physically strong enough for another season at the top level of football.
Pique appears to have told him that he would be fully recovered from the persistent adductor issues which hampered him for the final three months of the season, but as the Blaugrana start preseason, Pique is still not fully fit.
Diario AS say that even after two months to recover – Pique was ruled out for the rest of the season on the 5th of May – the veteran is still struggling with the injury. As the rest of the squad returned to the training pitch for pre-season, Pique continued working out alone in the gym.
It remains to be seen how Xavi will manage his former teammate this season, should he be forced to relegate Pique to the bench. The former Spanish international is no shrinking violet and may not take a demotion sitting down.
