Mascherano: Guardiola changed my vision of the game when I arrived in Barca

The former azulgrana player analyzes his stage at Barça and talks about what he learned with Pep Guardiola.

Javier Mascherano played seven and a half years at Barcelona. He became one of the five most attended foreigners in the club alongside Messi, Dani Alves, Cocu and Koeman. 

“ Moving from Barcelona to any team that is not among the top five leagues in the world is already a change, moreover, to go to another country, to a relatively new league, which does not reach 20 years of professional football,” he said in an extensive interview.

He also talks about Guardiola: “For me, there is no doubt that Pep is number 1.”

And he developed that idea: “Guardiola changed my vision of the game. I was a defensive player in England. When the team had possession of the ball, I practically dissociated myself from the game. Of course, when you went to Barcelona, where the main thing is possession and you have it in 70 per cent of the match, your role must change. You have to be part of the gear and the game model. That allowed me to start learning, to shape myself in this way. That's why I say that talent is also trained.”