The grassroots Barcelona player had reasons to show his chest this Monday in the office due to the explosion of his Masia against Levante. They were not debuts for the gallery. They were brilliant performances like that of Gavi (17 years old), convincing like those of Nico (19), Mingueza (22) or Eric García (20), sparkling although somewhat irregular by Riqui Puig (22). That, plus the memorable comeback of the chosen Ansu (18). The six, escorted by two captains on the pitch, Gerard Piqué (34) and Sergio Busquets (33). The other two, Jordi Alba (32) and Sergi Roberto (29), could not play the game. Ronald Araújo (22) joins this youth explosion, who arrived at Barça at the age of 19 and cannot be considered as such, but had to earn his place from the subsidiary. And injured is Alejandro Balde (17), another bomb on the left wing of which wonders are spoken and who already debuted as a starter, with injury, in the game against Granada.
The data speaks for itself. According to a CIES report, Barcelona is the second team in the five major leagues that gives the most minutes to those under 21 years of age, with 22.7%. Bayer Leverkusen is the only one to beat it. In Spain, the second is Mallorca, with a much lower percentage: 14.7%. Of course, the average age of the starting eleven Blaugrana is not low in relation to many other clubs, due to the indisputable role of footballers of the stature of Gerard I hammered, Jordi Alba or Sergio Busquets. Koeman's men average 26.78 years.
This Baby Barça is here to stay and has appeared out of nowhere. Last season, Koeman already showed that his bet on young people is determined. “If he is good and works, he will play even if he is young,” Alfred Schreuder, Koeman's assistant coach, explained Sunday. The Dutchman not only bet on Pedri and Mingueza last year. He had also already given gallons to Ansu until he was injured and played it with Araújo and, above all, with Ilaix, whom he led from the youth team to the first team. His goodbye hurt him, he had a great footballer in the making.
But where Ilaix grew up, so did Gavi and Nico, who, while waiting for Balde, have been the great discoveries of Barça 2021-22, especially the boy from Los Palacios, who is 17 years and a month old and plays with a variety of records you have impressed to anyone who had not followed his development in the 'pedrera' azulgrana. Gavi plays with two touches, but he also moves, he is capable of breaking into space and colliding on defense. Nico is a cooler player, very positional. He reads the game well and everyone wants to see in him, although they are major words, the Busquets of the future.
There is no way back. Due to the circumstances surrounding the club, and the performance of the players in the first official minutes they have had with Barça, this generation has come to stay.