Miralem Pjanic certainly imagined his first months at FC Barcelona differently, the Bosnian rarely got a chance under Ronald Koeman. With the Sports world the 29-year-old now spoke about Koeman, his relationship with Lionel Messi and previous Barça offers.
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In an interview with the Sports world said Barça’s newcomer to midfield Miralem Pjanic…
…whether his goal to make it 1-1 for Olympique Lyon in the Champions League in 2009, with which he kicked Real Madrid out of the tournament, had shaped his career: “It was beautiful and it’s amazing that people still remember it. Scoring a goal at the Bernabeu is always a special experience and now I want to do it for Barça. “
…on whether he wants to continue at Barça even if Koeman is not currently betting on him: “Yes, of course, I didn’t sign for Barça to leave the following year. I signed to make history with a club that had been on my path for many years.”
…when asked what exactly he meant by ‘on the way’: “When I was 16, my father met with Barça officials who wanted me to join Barça B. I signed with Metz at the time and we didn’t appreciate how important Barça B is to this club. I have myself decided to start my career in France but I’ve always followed what Barça did, Abidal wanted to sign me two years ago, we were talking but the club invested in Antoine [Griezmann]and there was no more money left for me. I had to wait two years to fulfill my dream of becoming a Barça player. I came to Barca because of my game and my experience of winning, that’s what they expected me to do when I signed. I was told that my character and experience would be important in helping a generation of young La Masia players grow. Balance is important, and I came here to find that balance. That’s still my goal: to help a generation with a lot of quality grow. “
…on whether he’s disappointed with his time at Barça so far: “You see, I came to Barça to win the Champions League, that’s my goal. This year I want to help get the double, that’s my mentality. I never give up. When I’m not playing, I train the next morning even harder than usual, so that the coach can see that I’m not giving up. I haven’t stopped training a single day, even if I was late because of Covid-19 [in Barcelona] arrived. When the symptoms started I couldn’t believe it … Koeman told me in preparation to take it easy, not to rush. After that, it was hard for me to get in. Koeman doesn’t talk to the players much so I have to keep working to be ready when he needs me. “
…on his relationship with Lionel Messi: [Sie ist] spectacular. Leo talks to me a lot, he explains things about the environment that I initially missed. He kept an eye on me from the first moment, encouraged me, helped me. As footballers, we’ll never see someone like him again. I don’t know what he’s going to do, but I would love to be by his side for many years. “
…about who surprised him the most on the team: “Pedri has a special intelligence, he is a footballer who will go far. ‘Ous’ [Dembélé] has incredible power, he’s very good. But if we look at the names, they are all very good. That’s how it is when you come to Barça. “
…about what he misses the most at the moment: “Without a doubt it is being able to play in a full Camp Nou. I got that feeling when I played against Barça, coming on the pitch and looking up, it’s impressive, a feeling that you don’t forget. I want to see this as soon as possible, a full Camp Nou that cheers the team on – I want to play in a Camp Nou that cheers: That would mean that we are back to normal, that people can enjoy again. “
…about what he would ask Ronald Koeman for: “To be able to show continuity, two or three games, to show my football. That’s what every footballer needs. But I’ll keep working every training session to earn this chance. The coach relies heavily on the young players from La Masia, that’s good for the club because it means you keep a style and rely on players you’ve trained. I can bring my experience to important games. “
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