Barcelona defender Clement Lenglet speaks to essential workers amidst COVID-19

Barcelona centre-back Clement Lenglet brought smiles to Catalans working through the COVID-19 pandemic. The Frenchman spoke over a video conference call to a number of club staff members who have been working in nursing homes and other medical institutions to help fight the outbreak of the disease and help those in need.

Lenglet, whose mother is a nurse, has spent his time in lockdown keeping track of the events in Barcelona regarding the virus.

According to the Barcelona club website, this idea struck Lenglet after watching another video that was published by the club — Heroes of Sant Jordi. This video featured a number of Barcelona legends such as Carles Puyol, Patrick Kluivert, Chapi Ferrer, Hristo Stoichkov, Sergi Barjuan, Javier Saviola and Migueli. They thanked the workers who have put their lives on the line by working during this pandemic to aid those in need.

Barcelona salute the Catalan community

Barcelona have also contacted a number of such staff members who have dedicated this time to help fight coronavirus via their foundation 'Culers action against COVID-19' on Twitter. This helped give these heroes a platform to share their stories with a personal touch to it. The people contacted by Lenglet include,

"Míriam Gallana, coach of Barça Women's U11 team and a social worker in a nursing home; of Josep Parera, a member of the club since he was born and a psychologist in a nursing home; of Leopoldo Higa, Barça U18 coach and emergency doctor at the Hospital de Sant Pau and Pere Bosquet, Head Coach Barça Academy Haikou, who has gone through three confinements and is now helping to make masks with his mother and aunt, members of the Solidary Seamstresses, while waiting to return to China."

Lenglet celebrating his goal for Barcelona

Lenglet spoke to them at length and asked them to share their experiences working through such difficult circumstances. The Frenchman shared an optimistic message at the end of it, saying,

"With Covid-19 we are having a pretty hard time and everyone is supporting each other, which we may not have done until recently. I hope it stays like this when the virus passes and we return to normal.”

The towering centre-half was very impressive for his former club Sevilla and won plaudits for his displays in both La Liga and Europe. It was the latter in particular which helped him solidify his status after a stellar display against Manchester United as they kept a clean sheet against the Red Devils. The second leg ended in misery for the Manchester club as Sevilla found a winner late on with the score at 1-1 to leave José Mourinho's men no hope of a comeback.

Lenglet put in a stellar display against Manchester United

Lenglet was linked with a move to the Red Devils for a brief while in the aftermath of their horrendous season. However, he ultimately joined Barcelona after they were impressed not only by his defensive and aeiral prowess but also his ability on the ball. A cool and composed head on the ball, Lenglet boasts a commendable 91.7% pass accuracy at a staggering average of 72.4 passes per game in La Liga this season.

At just 24 years of age, the sky is the limit for Lenglet.