Barcelona new signing ‘pleasantly surprised’ with Xavi’s training sessions | OneFootball

Robert Lewandowski, for the better part of the last decade, played with one of Europe’s most physically demanding teams at Bayern Munich.

Pep Guardiola and Hansi Flick’s side, during different periods in the 2010s, were among the best-pressing, and most attacking sides in the world. On the contrary, Barcelona have often been criticised for their lack of intensity.

However, it seems things have changed under Xavi. While it is evident that Barça are pressing better, and maintaining a better tempo, their intensity is best exemplified during training sessions.

According to a report from SPORT, Lewandowski has been left ‘pleasantly surprised’ with Barcelona’s training sessions. They have been more physically exhausting than he had expected, but is happy about the same.

“I’m more tired than I was expecting,”, he told a Polish journalist after coming back from the USA tour, the report says.

Barcelona’s physical preparation seemed on point yesterday against Rayo Vallecano, as the team strove for a win. The game lasted nearly 100 minutes, and while it ended with a stalemate, the hosts maintained a high tempo throughout.

If Xavi can correct the mistakes of his predecessors and help Barcelona reach the peak of their fitness, the short-term future looks very promising.