Riquelme wished Xavi the best in Barcelona: “I have no doubts that he will do very well”

Boca Juniors faced Barcelona in the Maradona Cup. The friendly match that ended with the victory of the xeneize team on penalties, was played in Saudi Arabia, where Juan Román Riquelme was also present accompanying the main squad.

Hours before the meeting in memory of Diego Maradona, Román spoke to Marca, where he recalled his brief stint in the Barça team: “The feelings towards Barcelona will always be the best. I was lucky to get to European football thanks to that club and for that alone I will always be very grateful. I was there for a year but I enjoyed it a lot”.

In those years, the former footballer coincided with Xavi, Barcelona’s glory and current coach. He praised his former teammate: “Xavi is one of the most important players in the history of Spanish football. You have to give it time because it has just arrived. I have no doubts that he will do very well ”.

The reason why Riquelme’s stay at Barcelona was short and he had to be loaned to Villarreal was because of the style of play of the Dutch coach Louis van Gaal, who made it clear on several occasions that he did not ask the Argentine because he argued that without the ball, Riquelme did not support the team. He even said that they played with 10.

Roman does not hold a grudge: “It was my turn as a coach in Barcelona and I tried to learn in each training session and each game with him and with the club. I have really enjoyed being at that institution and hopefully Louis is doing very well wherever he is.”.

Boca Juniors’ goal for the 2022 season is to win the Copa Libertadores. There are many names that sound like possible reinforcements, but nothing has been confirmed yet.