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Pedri will arrive at Barcelona this week from Las Palmas and has already generated plenty of excitement ahead of his move.
The highly-rated 17-year-old has already been dubbed the club’s ‘new Iniesta’ and fans have been offered the chance to catch a first glimpse of Pedri in the club’s colors by Sport’s Toni Juanmarti.
Barcelona have confirmed Pedri will begin pre-season at the club on Tuesday along with eight other players including fellow new signings Francisco Trincao and Matheus Fernandes.
Players such as Rafinha, Juan Miranda, Jean-Clair Todibo, Rafinha, Moussa Wague, and Carles Alena, who all spent the 2019-20 season away from the club on loan, will also join the session.
The group will train separately from the rest of the first-team who are preparing for Friday’s Champions League quarter-final against Bayern Munich. Barcelona are due to fly out to Lisbon on Thursday for the crunch clash against the German giants.
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Can Pedri Make an Impact at Barcelona?
Pedri agreed a move to Barcelona earlier this season and has gone on to enjoy an impressive campaign in the Segunda División with Las Palmas.
Pedri compared to his UD Las Palmas team-mates in the Segunda División this season:
• Most minutes played
• Most shots assisted
• Most big chances created
• Most dribbles completed
• Third-most goal contributions
A 17-year-old in his first senior season.
Las Palmas boss Pepe Mel told Goal’s Ignasi Oliva Gispert that the teenager “will fit perfectly at Barcelona” and has urged the Catalan giants not to send him out on loan to gain more experience.
Bundesliga clubs Bayern Munich and Borussia Mönchengladbach have both expressed an interest in taking the youngster on a temporary basis, according to Max Bielefield at Sky Sport.
Pedri has told Sport he has received some “interesting proposals” but his priority is to stay at the club and force his way into the first team.
“I want to get there and impress. I’ll do everything possible to stay here. If it was up to me, we’d start training tomorrow morning. My dream is to succeed at Barça and I want to say: ‘Here I am. I want to play for Barça – and not just during the preseason.’ I’ll work as hard as anyone else but remain grounded at the same time. I know I must be true to myself.
“The priority is to play. There have been some very interesting proposals from Bundesliga sides, who are insisting they want to take me (on loan). Barça know about this. Those clubs believe I could be an important part of their team and gain experience.”
The youngster faces stiff competition for a place in the squad for next season but will be hoping he can impress his new club during pre-season and try to force his way into manager Quique Setien’s future plans.
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