Eric Garcia picks out Barcelona leader – ‘Often you get mad at him, but…’ | OneFootball

Eric Garcia has picked out Raphinha as the leader of this Barcelona side, despite noting that at times, he can be a frustrating teammate. The Brazilian picked up his form at the end of Xavi Hernandez’s spell as manager, but has taken his game to another level under Hansi Flick over the last 18 months.

Raphinha was named among the captaincy group for Barcelona at the start of Flick’s first season in charge, and has become the face of a defiant team. Last season he was arguably their best player, scoring 34 goals and providing 26 assists in just 57 appearances.

‘Often you get mad at him becuase he exaggerates’

Speaking to DAZN in an interview, Garcia was asked if there was a silent leader of the Barcelona team.

“He’s not a leader who’s that quiet and under the radar, but I think Raphinha is. He has a lot of character, and you often get mad at him because he sometimes exaggerates, but I think he has this fiery spirit that makes him run up and down the pitch the whole game, helping us a lot in defense and scoring the goals he scores,” Sport quote.

Raphinha was a candidate for the Ballon d’Or, and much to his frustration, was left out of the FIFPro World XI. Barcelona will now be without him for five weeks at a crucial point in the season.

“Considering the year he had last season, he can be considered one of the best players in the world.”

Eric Garcia becoming a leader

Garcia himself has taken on a leadership role this season, and was named part of the captaincy group following the exit of Marc-Andre ter Stegen on loan to Girona.

“Trying to help my teammates as much as possible comes naturally to me. I like helping them both on and off the field. I’ve been captain since I was little.”

Flick has often gone out of his way to praise Garcia’s leadership qualities, and undoubtedly he has been one of Barcelona’s most consistent performers this season. After Pau Cubarsi, Lamine Yamal and Joan Garcia, Eric is Flick’s most used player this season, and was signed to a new deal until 2031 this season. He is on course to return from injury after the international break.