‘I was shocked’… Ilkay Gundogan sends huge praise towards Barcelona defensive prodigy | OneFootball

One of the things that makes FC Barcelona a special club is the reliance and trust placed in the team’s youngsters. Despite being one of the world’s top clubs, and hence having a lot of pressure to perform well, La Blaugrana simultaneously put a lot of emphasis on their youth. Fortunately, this has often worked well for Barcelona.

However, the reality of the matter is that these youngsters are not like other young talents. Known for the quality of the youth that it develops and produces, La Masia and the club’s youth teams ensure that the Barcelona first team only finds players who are absolutely ready for the top level.

In fact, even outsiders are often left amazed by the quality of these youngsters and what they manage to do at Barcelona. One great example of this has just popped up through the words of former Barcelona midfielder Ilkay Gundogan, who spent one season at the club after arriving on a free transfer from Manchester City before ultimately returning to the same team one season later.

In a recent interview, as highlighted by Mundo Deportivo, Gundogan confessed that he was left shocked by the very fact that Barcelona centre-back Pau Cubarsi was only 17 years old:

“The case of Lamine Yamal was obvious, but Pau Cubarsí… Before he played, you could already see in training how good he was. When I arrived, I thought he was 21/22 years old, but when they told me that he had just turned 17, I was shocked.”

He further went on to elaborate that his shock was based on the fact that Cubarsi seemed way too mature for his age. Gundogan also confessed that he firmly believed La Masia to be the very identity of Barcelona itself:

“He seemed very mature for his age. I remember talking about him with an assistant of Xavi. La Masia is the identity of Barça.”

Ultimately, what the German midfielder said could not be further from the truth. In the midst of all the praise and appreciation that goes towards Lamine Yamal, and deservingly so, the name of Pau Cubarsi and just how impressive of a player he is at his age often ends up getting overlooked. Thankfully, Gundogan is there to remind everyone yet again that he is also just 17 years old.