Former Barcelona talent accuses Blaugrana director of ‘screwing up my career’ | OneFootball

A former member of the attacking ranks at La Liga giants Barcelona has this week recalled how a member of the club’s board, at the time, ‘screwed up’ his prospects at the top level.

The player in question comes in the form of Jeffrén Suárez.

Suárez, for those not familiar with his name, spent seven years on the books at Barcelona, between 2004 and 2011.

The versatile frontman across his first-team stint managed a total of 22 La Liga appearances, notching a trio of goals along the way.

Following his Camp Nou departure, however, Suárez never quite managed to reach the heights once hoped for him.

The now-37-year-old did manage spells with the likes of Sporting CP and Real Valladolid, but struggled to find a long-term home.

And as alluded to above, if the latest comments on Suárez’s part are anything to go by, he believes one individual is chiefly to blame for as much.

Speaking during an appearance on the ‘Dark Ice Cream’ podcast, as cited by Diario Sport, the four-time capped Venezuela international took firm aim at ex-Barcelona director Andoni Zubizarreta:

“Injuries were the reason why I left Barcelona and with that issue, the club turned its back on me. Not Guardiola, but Zubizarreta – sporting director at the time – was the one who screwed up my career. I had an offer from Valencia and he closed the doors for me in Spain. When teams from abroad came to ask for me, the price was between 3 and 4 million euros and when one from Spain came it was around 5 million. Since then I can’t even see him.”

Conor Laird – GSFN