Former Barcelona midfielder, Cesc Fabregas, has offered his honest verdict on the current situations of defenders Gerard Pique and Jordi Alba at Camp Nou.
Pique and Alba have rarely started for Barcelona in the 2022-2023 season, spending most of their time warming the bench.
While Pique has only played 135 minutes of football for Barca over two matches, Alba has had 216 minutes across four matches.
However, Fabregas, a former teammate with Pique and Alba, believes the pair would struggle to come to terms with their rotational roles under manager, Xavi.
The former Chelsea and Arsenal star, who went through something similar at AS Monaco, claimed it would hurt the two Barcelona veterans to train with substitutes following a matchday while the first-team players recover.
Speaking on the players’ current situations at Barca, Fabregas told RAC1, “It costs a lot to accept the substitution.
“What must cost them more when they don’t play is that the next day you have to work with the substitutes while the starters recover.”
Speaking on Xavi’s attempt to establish a new order at Barcelona, Fabregas added: “It may have come to him sooner than he imagined, but he is very much prepared. In the end, he is still Xavi and that always gives you important credit.”
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