One week after Barcelona Alevin A team won La Liga Promises 2021 now it was Infantil B turn to give their best in one of the biggest youth competitions in Spain.
After the pandemic postponed last season’s La Liga Promises, the competition was played out this year now with an already older players who recently turned 13. Infantil B coach Albert Puig took 12 players to the tournament. It includes goalkeepers – Iker Rodríguez and Pau Fernández, defenders – Madou Murcia, Jean Paul and Juan Pablo Galbarro, midfielders – Guille Fernández, Jaume Aghayedo, Pedro Rodríguez and Sidney So, forwards – Sama Nomoko, Toni Fernández and Óscar Gistau.
The Group Stage:
On Friday Infantil B played 4 games in the group stage. In the first 2 games, they beat Levante 1-0 and Mallorca 2-0. Óscar Gistau became the first goalscorer in the competition for Infantil in the game against Levante. While in the game against Mallorca the goalscorers became Guille Fernández and Jean Paul, Guille named as man of the match during that game with 1 goal and 1 assist. After a great start, Barcelona couldn’t keep their great form and lost to both Getafe and Villarreal with a one-goal margin. Despite losing 2 last games Infantil B managed to qualify for the knockout stage in 2nd place with 2 wins and 2 losses, while also scoring 4 goals and conceding on 3 occasions.
Knockout Phase:
In the round of 16, Barcelona faced Real Valladolid, while early in the afternoon youngsters managed to defeat them with great goals from Óscar Gistau and Toni Fernández. In the quarter-finals, Infantil faced a talented Real Betis team, but after a tough game that ended in 0-0, Barcelona managed to overcome their opponents in the penalty shootout winning 6-5 after Real Betis player missed his 6th penalty.
And just like that Barcelona managed to get into the semifinals of the competition, where they would face Villarreal after losing to them in the group stage 2-1. On Sunday morning Villarreal opened the score in the 8th minute, with the game eventually finishing 1-0 in favour of Villarreal, who went on and won the competition by beating Sevilla in the final. Meanwhile, Barcelona still had possibilities to win silverware if they would beat Granada for the third place. However, the game ended in a 1-1 stalemate and eventually Infantil B won the game 9-8 on penalties winning a bronze place.
Stats:
- Games Played: 8
- Wins: 3
- Draws: 2 (Won on penalties)
- Loses: 3
- Goals Scored: 7
- Goals Conceded: 5
- Clean Sheets: 4
- Infantil B top scorer: Óscar Gistau [2]
- Infantil B top assister: Guille Fernández [2]
- In 2 penalty shootouts Infantil B scored 15 out of 16 penalties taken.
Players to follow in the future:
Guille Fernandez – Guillermo is a midfielder who can play as a central or attacking midfielder. He is very skilful on the ball, has great vision and manages to avoid any pressure from the opposition while keeping the ball close to his feet. In the tournament he managed 1 goal and 2 assists, making him the biggest goal and assists contributor for Barcelona in La Liga Promises.
Samakou Nomoko – Sama is a very talented winger who can play as a left-winger and on the right-wing, who during the tournament scored once. However, in his first season playing in 11- side for Infantil B this season, he has scored 9 goals and has a few assists in 11 games. Samakou is fast has good dribbling skills, while also being athletic and good technically makes him hard to deal with. He already made his debut for Infantil A this season and in his first game, he won a penalty.
Juan Galbarro – Juan is a talented left-back, despite not scoring or assisting in La Liga Promises he stayed a dangerous threat on the left side. With him adjusting to 11-side football he already picked up a few goals and a few assists for Infantil B.
Pedro Rodríguez – Pedro is a midfielder who can play in a more advanced position. He picked up a goal and an assist in the La Liga Promises competition. He has incredible vision and passing ability. This season for Infantil B he already picked up a few goals thanks to his ability in front of the goal.
