Eric Garcia interview: ‘Making it at Barcelona was my dream. It almost didn't happen'

AlavésAthletic ClubAtlético MadridBarcelonaCelta de VigoElcheEspanyolGetafeGironaLevanteMallorcaOsasunaRayo VallecanoReal BetisReal MadridReal OviedoReal SociedadSevillaValenciaVillarrealPodcastsCopa del ReyEric Garcia interview: ‘Making it at Barcelona was my dream. It almost didn’t happen’Garcia was named in La Liga's team of the season and has starred for Barca this term (Juan Manuel Serrano Arce/Getty Images) Share articleImpressing Pep Guardiola on your Premier League debut would be a dream for any player. Eric Garcia did exactly that — just not quite in the way you might think. It was September 21, 2019, in a Manchester City home match against Watford. Garcia was among the substitutes for Guardiola’s side. In the pre-match team talk, the manager revealed doubts over whether Watford would be playing with four or five at the back. Garcia helped him out. From watching the away team’s warm-up, he had spotted it would definitely be a back four. Guardiola was astonished that this 18-year-old would have even been paying attention, let alone thinking about things this deeply. It might well have been the most difficult task of Garcia’s afternoon. The centre-back came on in the 63rd minute of an 8-0 victory, with his team-mates already 7-0 up. By that point, he was two years into studying for his coaching badges, having started them shortly after joining City’s academy from Barcelona at the age of 16. Now 25, Garcia has been back at Barca since 2021— in the end, he made a total of 35 appearances for City — and this season has been the most successful of his career to date. His versatility, intelligence and defensive prowess made him a fundamental part of Hansi Flick’s La Liga-winning side. He is the team’s third most-used player, just behind goalkeeper Joan Garcia and centre-back Pau Cubarsi. Last week, La Liga named him in their team of the season. Garcia is, unashamedly, a football obsessive. He can watch “at least” four matches a day on the weekends — “mostly La Liga and the Premier League” — and on multiple screens — “one on my TV and another on my tablet”. He already knows he wants to become a sporting director or manager after he retires from playing, leaning towards the latter. “I didn’t continue the coaching courses after re-joining Barca, but I will at some point,” he says. “I just love tactics so much. I also like the feeling of watching a random game of any league and trying to spot who is a good player. But I still think I’ll prefer being a coach. Right now (with my badges), I could manage in the top under-19s division here in Spain.” Players he’s been impressed by in England this term include Brentford’s Igor Thiago, Bournemouth’s Eli Junior Kroupi and Igor Jesus at Nottingham Forest. He adds: “When I watch football, I tend to focus more on those who play in positions I can be in. I like to learn from how they prepare and solve problems. “I always like to watch our opponents, to have information and know the other players and managers. It helps me understand what I need to do. I also still try to watch rival teams in the warm-up before matches — but now teams often try to trick you! “It wasn’t like that before. I’ve seen plenty of times that they do an exercise to play in a back four and then in-game they play with five defenders, or the other way around.” This has been Garcia’s best season so far, but in January 2025, he was lined up for an exit. He had spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Girona — starring in a hugely impressive title charge that ended in Champions League qualification — and struggled to establish himself as a starter back at Barca. Garcia was ready to leave on a permanent basis, either back to Girona or Serie A club Como. But everything changed after his performance in a thrilling 5-4 Champions League victory at Benfica on January 21, in which he came on as an emergency sub in the 16th minute. After the game, Flick told him there was no way he could let him go. That moment came back to Garcia’s thoughts during last week’s bus parade through the streets of Barcelona, in celebration of this season’s La Liga and Supercopa de Espana titles. “Succeeding here has been my dream since I was a kid, but in January 2025, I was extremely close to leaving,” he says. “I’ve spoken about that with people in the club these past few weeks. It is the football industry in a nutshell: everything can change in such a short time.” Garcia is now seen as the starting right-back for next season, having moved ahead of Jules Kounde in competition for the role. It is another show of faith from Flick, a manager Garcia appreciates a great deal. “It’s already been said, but it’s the truth: Flick is like a father to us,” he says. “In the good and the bad, he is honest. When he has to yell at you, he will do it straight to your face and tell you how it is, whether you like it or not. This is important in a team, and he’s good at handling those situations.” Garcia singles out one particular moment of Flick’s man-management this season. It came in February, after Barca were thrashed 4-0 at Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final and then lost 2-1 at Girona in La Liga. Flick and the players held a series of team meetings in response. “After those games, I think we learnt how to read games better,” he says. “There’s moments when the opponents have the ball, and you are tired after four, five or six consecutive presses, so you better hold it a bit and find your balance. We had meetings with the team, talking everything through, and found a solution that has made us better. “We have been more solid since. In the Champions League quarter-finals, we did not lose against Atletico because of pressing badly. It’s something in which we have improved and evolved, and I think it can be the path to follow to go to the next level. “High-pressing for 90 minutes is very difficult, and now we know there are moments when, if we don’t have the right legs or positioning on the pitch, you possibly take a step back, read the room and decide when to jump and press again. This is what Paris Saint-Germain did in the return leg of the Champions League semi-finals against Bayern Munich. When they could, they went pressing man-to-man. When they couldn’t, they waited deeper.” Beyond the management of Flick, who this week signed a contract extension until 2028, another key factor in Barca’s success has been the genius of Lamine Yamal, the 18-year-old forward set for his first World Cup with Spain this summer (although he may miss the first two matches through injury). Garcia’s versatility means he has played many matches at centre-back and as a defensive midfielder, but when at right-back, the blossoming chemistry between him and Yamal has elevated Barcelona’s game. “When I was at City with Pep, we used to have wide attacking wingers like Leroy Sane or Riyad Mahrez on the right flank, and Pep would always tell Kyle Walker: ‘Try to read and know when you have to move up to the attack. Wait wisely for the right moment.’ “If Lamine has a one-on-one with the defender, I will hardly go up because I know he will dribble past him and do his thing. But when he is double or even triple marked, which has happened a lot this season, then I need to go there to add a new layer to the attack. “Since the first day we played together, we got along really well. I always try to adapt to him. If I’m the right-back, I try to have a quick chat with him before the game to know what he wants from me — if he prefers me overlapping, underlapping, if I have to wait behind him… whatever he senses is best. “Because, besides his skill and dribbling, Lamine’s decision-making is off the charts. He has the intelligence to see what’s best in every game, so all I can do is adapt and try to help him shine. In training, he does things sometimes you really can’t believe.” There is a chance Garcia and Yamal get to combine this summer for Spain, too. Garcia was named on national team manager Luis de la Fuente’s 55-man long list for the World Cup last week. Garcia played 19 times for Spain between 2020 and 2022 under Luis Enrique, but has not made an appearance for his successor De la Fuente, who names his final squad on Friday. “It would be a dream ending to the campaign,” Garcia says. “I know the decision does not depend on me, but I am very satisfied with the effort I have put in. “It is going to be Luis’ decision, and I’ll respect that, but I have done my absolute best to earn that call. As an athlete, that’s what you always need to do. If I don’t get it, I’ll have to keep working and improving.” Spot the pattern. Connect the terms Find the hidden link between sports terms