Barcelona coach xavi Hernández praised the brave Marc Guiu after the 17-year-old came off the bench to score the only goal on his Athletic Bilbao debut on Sunday.
Guiu was brought on within less than 10 minutes remaining at the Olympic Stadium and 33 seconds later he was fed by Joao Felix home to slot home the winner to give Barca a narrow 1-0 win.
“Mark is a student at the academy and he made the difference,” Xavi told a news conference.
“I am satisfied with him in three very important things.
“At that moment I thought about him, because he is a scorer, he has a spark and I like him.” I have no problem with what we have.” The opposite is also true.
“I want to give them the confidence I had when I was 17 or 18,” he said.
Guiu is the latest young player to emerge from Barcelona’s youth academy to make an impact in the first team.
Ramin Yamal (16) and Fermin Lopes (20) also finished the season scoring important goals against Mallorca and Granada this season.
Both Gabi (19) and Alejandro Balde (20) have established themselves as starters in Barca’s first team.
“What surprises me about this generation is that they are fearless,” Xavi added of Barca’s youth.
“Maybe it was different in my day.
They have that spark.
He looks at me with an expression that says, “Put me on and I’ll show you what’s good.” When we put them on, they are ready and show character and courage.
“I saw it at Gabi, Balde, Ramin, Fermin… and Mark. There was no fear on his face.
“I told him he would have a chance.
He has a chance and he takes it.
I felt he was ready.
I am very happy to have Mark.
He’s a good kid who works hard.
“Scoring with the first touch of the ball is special.
I congratulated him, you can imagine how he felt.
Today could be the best day of his life.”
Kiwoo, who joined the club’s academy in 2013 and is a member of Spain’s U-17 national team, enjoyed every moment.
“I can’t believe it,” he told reporters.
“I enjoy this moment.
I didn ‘; t think about that.
I’ve worked for it all my life, taking advantage of every opportunity. I can’t sleep tonight.
“I had several dreams almost every night.
I am proud.
It all happened so fast that I barely had time to think about it.
It was a hunch.”
Guiu had the chance at Barcelona due to injuries. Robert Lewandowski, Frenkie de Jong, Pedri, Jules Kunde, Rafinha and Sergi Roberto faced Athletic.
Xavi said neither Conde nor Roberto would return for this week’s Champions League home game against Shakhtar Donetsk or the La Liga game against Real.
Ahead of Saturday’s Clasico, Barca are now just one point behind Real Madrid, who are level with Girona at the top of the league.
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