Álex Collado: "I won't go back to Barça B"
The player wants to fight for a place in Ronald Koeman's first team squad
Centre midfielder Álex Collado, who scored Barcelona's second goal in yesterday's pre-season friendly against Nàstic, told television channel 'TV3' that he is not willing to drop back down to Barça B next season and that he is currently waiting to hear how he fits into the club's plans for the upcoming campaign: "I'm going to work my hardest to get minutes in the first team. I'm happy. I won't go back to Barça B, but I'll work my hardest to stay [in the first team]". The player acknowledged, however, that if he doesn't feature in Ronald Koeman's plans for the 2021-22 season, he may need to join another club on loan.
On yesterday's match, Collado said "I am really happy with the way the team is working this pre-season. All players are focused and working hard. We've won the game and it has been a useful match in our preparations".
Rey Manaj was another stand-out player in yesterday's friendly. After bagging a hat-trick, he said "I'm going to take the match ball home with me. I want all of my team mates to sign it". The Barça B forward said that "I need to keep working hard to make sure that today's game won't just be a nice memory". On his future, he simply said "I'm calm and focused on my work. Whatever happens, happens, but I'm happy".
