«He looked at me with these words» Getting to know the author of the historical debut for Barca
Xavi could read it on the face of 17-year-old Guiu: «Coach put me on». And Marc scored the winning goal within half a minute!
Barcelona has been troubled in the last month: two unnecessary point losses against Granada and Mallorca hard-fought 1-0 victories against Sevilla and Porto. But most importantly, injuries, there are so many of them! Approximately six players are set to miss Saturday's El Clásico: Pedri, Kunde, Roberto, Rafinha, Lewandowski, and De Jong. The last two may recover quickly, but the team is still precarious.
Yesterday's game against Athletic was a crucial test. Barca won without problems: they created little (especially in the first half) and allowed the opponent to make forays. The unexpected debutant saved the team - 17-year-old forward Marc Guiu came on for the last 10 minutes and scored just 33 seconds later! Here's how it happened:
- A sprint behind the defender
- A perfect assist from Felix
- A precise shot with his "weaker" foot
Now, cross your fingers. Marc became the youngest Barcelona player in the 21st century to score on his debut. Secondly, this is the third-fastest goal in La Liga's history! Thirdly, a purely media fact - the player's number of followers grew tenfold after the game!
Here's how the talent described his moment:
17-year-old Barcelona forward Marc Guiu: «Everything happened very quickly. It was all intuitive; I didn't have time to think. When Joao Felix made the pass, I saw the space. I saw that Unai had come forward and knew I had to take the shot. My teammates congratulated me and told me to enjoy it».
Who is Marc Guiu?
Surprisingly, this guy has spent more minutes for the first team than the second team! Marc has barely made an appearance for Barcelona, playing only one match for eight minutes. Currently, the youngster is performing for the U19 team. But there's no need to be surprised by such a rapid rise - it's the same story as with Lamine Yamal. Here, Javier deserves credit: yes, Barcelona is facing a crisis in terms of personnel, but he trusts the youth so much that he brings talents directly from the youth teams. He invites them to training regularly if he needs to give them playing time. As Inigo Martinez said after the match, Guiu has been training with the team since the beginning of the season.
Barcelona's head coach, Xavi Hernandez: «Marc Guiu's face on the bench didn't look scared. Marc looked at me with these words: 'Coach, put me on!' His face... I saw that he was ready, so I put him on. You can see that he can score goals, and everything went well. I'm so happy».
Marc's former academy coach, Ivan Carrasco, described him best: «He's a pure center forward, a classic 'number nine,' a specialist in his field, who stands out for his physical strength. His best attribute is his play in the air. He's not a forward who can drift to the flanks or stand out for his combination play».
Guiu is very hardworking and excels in pressing
A bright illustration of this skill is his recent goal for Barcelona U19: he pushed the goalkeeper, causing him to make a mistake when distributing the ball. Another exceptional advantage is his physicality: broad-shouldered, 187 cm tall, and he's only 17 years old.
Before his debut for the first team, Marc Guiu shone at the recent EURO U17, where he became the top scorer with four goals. In the tournament, he showcased exceptional finishing skills: defenders could mark him for almost the entire match, but he would score as soon as he got a chance. Lamine Yamal created opportunities in Spain, and Guiu capitalized on them.
Now, these two have suddenly started playing for Barca. Yes, stars truly shine only in the dark.
Published by Patrick Jane
23.10.2023