FC Barcelona (FCB) midfielder Pedro Gonzalez Lopez, also known as Pedri, gave an interview on Tuesday (May 16) where he talked about how the former FCB player Lionel Messi helped him when he first arrived at the club.
"During my starting days at Barça, I was shy to even go to the dressing room, and I stayed all the time in the gym. Leo (Messi) came to me and told me not to be shy, he encouraged me a lot,” he said.
The 20-year-old also talked about how close Xavi, Barca’s head coach, is to the players and is always giving pieces of advice.
“Xavi is close to the players and gives us good advice, even off the pitch he always tells us not to exceed the limits. Sometimes when he speaks he gradually gets angry, almost every player has seen Xavi’s anger,” Pedri said.
The Spaniard also revealed what he bought with his first-ever salary.
“The first thing I bought with my salary was a car for my father," he said.
The Spanish midfielder also showed his desire of seeing his former teammate Messi back at the club.
"I would love to see Leo (Messi) come back to Barcelona,” Pedri said.
Talking about tonight’s (17 May) UEFA Champions League (UCL) semi-final between Real Madrid and Manchester City, he wished City a victory.
"I won't tell you that I want Madrid to win, I prefer City to qualify for the final. I love Pep's style and he's a former Barca coach," he added.
The 20-year-old also stated that he is not afraid of injuries.
“There are players who, when they come back from injury, are afraid, but I forget that I was injured and play as I am,” he concluded.
It must be noted that Pedri is one of the most important players for Xavi and the latter sees him as “untouchable”. His name has also never appeared in transfer rumours in the recent past.