Marc Bartra on swapping Barcelona for Dortmund
Sunday, October 30, 2016
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"It's practically the same," Marc Bartra tells UEFA.com as he discusses the differences between Barcelona and Dortmund, and explains how his local club helped channel his competitive streak.
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Central defender Marc Bartra left Barcelona for Dortmund in the summer, having been with the Catalan club since he was a child. The 25-year-old Spanish international explains to UEFA.com that – language notwithstanding – the two clubs have plenty in common.
On making the move from Barcelona to Dortmund ...
It's one of the best decisions I've made in my life, although it was also one of the toughest. I've come to a new city, a new country where they speak a new language, and left Barça where I had been for so many years – I'd been playing for them since I was 11.
When you are a first-team player at Barcelona and live in the city, you realise that lots of people are devoted to the team, to Barça, but it's practically the same here. You see a sea of yellow in the city, on cars; there are Dortmund badges everywhere. You go to the club shop and they've got every possible piece of merchandise. I'd even say that the support inside the stadium here is more fervent, because it's incredible how the fans cheer the team on. From the moment you arrive at the stadium they're all there, ready to get behind the team. It's impressive.
On Dortmund coach Thomas Tuchel ...
He's a very meticulous coach who wants everything to be just right. He has a big personality and I think the best thing about him is what a clear ethos he has. He wants to have the ball and play attacking football, and he has a knack for getting his ideas across. Sometimes we'll even be talking in German and I won't understand what he says exactly, but he still motivates me just by the way he says it. He can really get through to players.
What the gaffer asks for reminds me a lot of what it was like playing under Josep Guardiola and, in some respects, Luis Enrique. It's even similar to when I go on international duty with Spain in terms of the way we try to bring the ball out from the back, which allows you to keep possession and create more chances.
On his best moments as a Barcelona player ...
My debut was one of the most special moments, but above all what I remember are the day-to-day things – getting up and going to train with people who you know are among the best in the world and whom you can learn from every single day. You see them more than you see your family!
And being able to learn out on the pitch, not just in games but in training too, is something I always appreciated. I always tried to keep my eyes wide open to learn as much from them as possible both on and off the pitch.
On being a bit intense as a child ...
When I used to play as a kid, people would say that I was too pumped up; they'd get angry with me because I was so competitive and accuse me of acting like I was about to play in the Champions League. Even when I was a youth player, I'd always approach every single game as if it were the biggest match possible, but that's the way to go about things if you want to advance and improve. Whatever the game, however old you are, you've got to approach it as if it were the biggest match you can play in.