“I got scared” - Barcelona star Pedri opens up on first meetings with Lionel Messi and Sergio Busquets  

Barcelona starlet Pedri has opened up about the surreal and overwhelming experience of meeting Lionel Messi, Sergio Busquets, and Gerard Piqué during his early days at the Catalan club. The midfielder admitted he was ‘scared’ on his first physical meeting with the trio.

Pedri grew through the ranks at Las Palmas before joining Barcelona in the summer of 2019. However, he could establish himself immediately as a first-team player at La Blaugrana and was loaned back to his childhood club. His stay at Barcelona was made permanent after he returned to the club in the summer of 2020.

He has since become a regular at the Catalan club and has seen his stock rise under manager Hansi Flick. In a recent interview with Spanish outlet El País, Pedri spoke about his beginnings in Barcelona and how he felt when he joined the club for the first time.

“I was already surprised when I went from the Las Palmas subsidiary to the first team. Imagine when you got here. There were Leo [Messi], Busquets, Pique… When I started to meet them personally, I got scared,” Pedri said.

Since joining Barca, Pedri has scored 25 goals and provided 20 assists in 189 appearances across competitions. In the ongoing campaign, he has scored five goals and provided seven assists in 46 appearances across competitions.

“I changed the way I train’’ – Pedri on how he got rid of his injury woes at Barcelona

In the same interview, Pedri opened up about the changes he made to overcome the injury problems that have plagued him since joining Barcelona. After Pedri secured his way into the club's starting XI in the 2020-21 season, the following season was one to forget for the young midfielder as he sat out a huge chunk of games due to a hamstring injury.

His injury problems continued in the latter part of the 2022-23 season and the 2023-24 season. He returned to action towards the end of last season and hasn’t been injured since that time.

Speaking on how he put his injury woes behind him, Pedri said:

“I trained, I changed my diet, I started many things. I changed the way I train. I did my best, but it didn’t work. Now everything works. No one knows the real reason. I changed some things, but I can’t say that’s exactly what helped me. Maybe my body just evolved,”

The Spaniard further revealed that he had a difficult time trying to cope with incessant injuries and how he stayed composed and strong during the unwanted period. He said:

“When I was injured, I went through very difficult times. Mentally, I wasn’t at my best. Each injury hurts more than the last. When you have many injuries, it is natural to think about what needs to be changed. I have never needed counseling or psychological therapy.’’