Barcelona star panned after performance which ‘proves Pep Guardiola right’

Barcelona defender Joao Cancelo will be glad that last week came to an end, as it could scarcely have gone worse for him on the pitch. The Portuguese right-back was at fault for a poor tackle on Ousmane Dembele against Paris Saint-Germain, resulting in a penalty, and suffered against Real Madrid, where he was at fault in all three goals scored by Los Blancos.

After the PSG match, Cancelo denounced the fact that he had received messages online wishing death on his daughter, in another gross show of the negative side of social media.

🚨 João Cancelo is living his worst moment as a Barça player. The Portuguese followed up a below par performance against PSG with another one against Real Madrid. @gbsans pic.twitter.com/FocXfQNeYx

— barcacentre (@barcacentre) April 22, 2024

However on the pitch, things did not improve in El Clasico. Former Barcelona defender Frank de Boer said that his performance explained Pep Guardiola’s decision to replace him at Manchester City, while Marco van Basten said that they were mistakes that were improper for a footballer at his age.

🗣️ – De Boer: "Now I know why Pep Guardiola didn't like Cancelo. This guy plays his own football game. He thinks it's only about what you do on the ball, you are a defender Goddamnit."

🗣️ – Van Basten: "It's insane how Cancelo still makes the same mistakes at his age (29)." pic.twitter.com/CuYEEy3NIb

— 𝐀𝐅𝐂 𝐀𝐉𝐀𝐗 💎 (@TheEuropeanLad) April 21, 2024

Of course Cancelo still belongs to City, although Barcelona and the player have publicly declared a desire to continue together next season.

Cancelo le debe media carrera a Guardiola. Lo tengo clarísimo. Jamàs habría sido considerado un lateral de referencia de no ser por el tiempo que pasó en el City.

— Alvaro Romeo (@Alvaro_Romeo) April 21, 2024

Reportedly City are keen to sell him permanently for a fee upwards of €30m, while Barcelona want him on loan again. Ironically, it may well bring him closer to a return to the Blaugrana, as his performances will have done nothing for his value on the market.