Barcelona manager Xavi Hernandez has opened up on the role that new signing Pablo Torre will be playing once he arrives from Racing Santander.
Speaking to the press ahead of Barcelona’s game against Elche (h/t SPORT), manager Xavi Hernandez reacted to the news of the Catalans completing the signing of Pablo Torre.
Barcelona announced earlier in the week that they had reached an agreement to sign the 18-year-old Torre from Racing Santander. The teenage Spanish prodigy will see out the season at his current club before switching to Camp Nou once the summer transfer window is officially open for business.
Barcelona have been focusing heavily on recruitment at the youth level and for the B team, which makes sense for the club in the short and long run due to their financial issues. Torre follows in the footsteps of acquisitions like Pedri, Ez Abde and Ferran Jutgla over the past couple of years, all of whom have gone on to make an impact at the first-team level, with Pedri especially becoming a mainstay.
Xavi was quizzed about the latest addition to his squad during the press conference, and the 42-year-old had words of praise for young Torre’s ability and attitude. At the same time, the Barcelona boss added that the 18-year-old would be turning up for the B team and would be called up to the first team as and when needed, much like Abde and Jutgla have been this season.
“Pablo Torre is a footballer with a Barça profile,” Xavi said. “We have been following Pablo. He is a natural talent. He can play inside, on the wing, he is strong with both legs. He has a very good inside game, last pass, he puts it very well from set-pieces. He is very young, and with the ability to play for Barça for years, it will depend on him and his mentality.”
Speaking of the player’s role, the manager added: “Pablo Torre will have dynamics of the first team. But as is the case with Abde and Jutgla, when they won’t be able to play for the first team because of the great competition, they will contribute their talents in Barca B.”
Real Madrid were also in the race to sign Torre, but Barcelona edged past them thanks to Xavi himself getting involved in negotiations with the player. Explaining the part he played in the transfer, the club legend said: “We explained our idea to him, we told him what we wanted and he is the one who decided to come. I am honest and I do not deceive anyone, I told him what awaits him here.”
Torre has made 48 senior appearances for Racing Santander to date. He has scored ten goals and created 12 more for his teammates. The 18-year-old will be hoping to boost his tally in the remainder of the season before he arrives at Camp Nou in the summer.
