Barcelona are delighted that from the early signs, they appear to have unearthed another gem in their academy, following a strong starting debut from 17-year-old central defender Pau Cubarsi at the weekend. Cubarsi made his debut last week coming on for Andreas Christensen against Unionistas de Salamanca, looking solid in the process, so much so that Xavi trusted him away from home at the Benito Villamarin in a must-win game.
According to Diario AS, Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has been following the progress of Cubarsi for some time. Whether he would try to poach Cubarsi from Barcelona, taking into account how poorly that could sit with the club he supports, is another matter. In Barcelona they know how much interest Guardiola has taken in him though, and as such have renewed his deal twice in a number of months – his current deal runs until 2026. Joan Laporta does not want to lose him to the Premier League as happened with Cesc Fabregas or Gerard Pique.
Cubarsi is described as the perfect mix between Pique and Carles Puyol. A defender that is aggressive and enjoys that side of the game like Puyol, but also a player that has the ball-playing abilities of Pique. Against Real Betis, he had a pass accuracy of 93.5%. Measuring just over 180cm currently, he is still growing too.
While Barcelona’s transfer policy can be criticised, Laporta has generally done a good job of tying down their young talent in recent years. Pedri, Ansu Fati, Gavi, Ronald Araujo, Lamine Yamal and Alejandro Balde have all signed new deals since his return, the latter two doing so amid interest from Manchester City. The Blaugrana will be desperate to hold onto Cubarsi too.
