Former Barcelona star warns club over Lamine Yamal, hits out at ex-director – ‘Ruined my career’ | OneFootball

Jeffren Suarez, who famously scored the fifth goal in Barcelona’s 5-0 thrashing of Jose Mourinho’s Real Madrid in 2010, has officially retired from football.

The former winger, who last played in Thailand for Lamphun Warrior, spoke candidly on the podcast Helado Oscuro (h/t Mundo Deportivo) about his time at Barça, as well as the club’s upcoming superstar, Lamine Yamal.

Suarez warns Barcelona about Lamine Yamal

There is much excitement at Barcelona over Lamine Yamal, who is seemingly becoming a global superstar.

However, Jeffren feels Barcelona must be responsible about taking care of his behaviour and maturity.

“He is 18 years old, and it’s normal that he doesn’t know the consequences of his actions. But you have to catch him, because if you don’t catch him in time… forget it. But I think Barça will do things well,” he said.

Jeffren compared Yamal’s current role in the team to that of Lionel Messi during the club’s golden years, offering a word of caution about overhyping any one player.

“He’s not the one who makes the difference. Barcelona have very good players, and people talk about Pedri. It’s like saying if Xavi and Iniesta hadn’t played with Messi, Messi wouldn’t be what he is,” he added.

Speaking of Messi, Jefferen also talked about the Argentine’s leadership during his time at the club. He also talked about Pep Guardiola and how he was so protective of his team.

“Guardiola was the one who touched the sticks, but the one who did everything was the little one, and we all followed him. If we were going to war, Puyol and he were the first ones,” he said.

“You couldn’t touch Messi. If you were part of his circle, you could have fun with that, but if not,” he added.

Jeffren warns Barcelona about Lamine Yamal. (Photo by Paul Miller/Getty Images)

Jefferen also said that he used to be scared of Barcelona’s then-captain Puyol, although in a good way.

“He was exaggerated. I’ve never met anyone like that in my life: strong, intelligent, respectful. He was like a warrior; he scared me. Either you got out of the way or he ran over you,” he said.

Even though they no longer keep in touch, Jeffren still holds him in high regard. “Those people never change,” he said.

Despite positive memories with coaches, Jeffren didn’t hold back when discussing Andoni Zubizarreta, the former Barcelona sporting director.

“Injuries were the reason I left Barcelona, and with that, the club turned its back on me. Not Guardiola, but Zubizarreta, who ruined my career,” he said.

“I had an offer from Valencia, but they closed the door on me in Spain. When teams from abroad came to inquire, the price was €3-4 million. When it was a Spanish club, they quoted €5 million,” he said.

“Since then, I can’t stand him. After leaving Barça, I couldn’t find myself anywhere. It wasn’t until my first year in Thailand that I enjoyed football again,” he added.

Jeffren, though, still holds Guardiola in high regard as he revealed that he had met him in Qatar.

“It was a mutual decision between Guardiola and me. The conversation was tough. He told me that if I stayed, I wouldn’t play because they were going to sign Alexis Sánchez. Even so, Pep always had a lot of affection for me,” he said.

“Years later, I met him in Qatar, when he was managing Bayern, and he said to me: ‘You’re the fastest player I’ve ever had,’ and gave me a hug. I’ll stick with that,” he revealed.

Jeffren also praised Luis Enrique, adding, “We called Guardiola the sick man, but I learned a lot from him. The one I’ll never forget is Luis Enrique. He’s a Guardiola with a more aggressive mentality. My thought of not breaking down comes from him.”