The 'noi' ('boy' in Catalan)
from Santpedor near Barcelona has been a regular first choice for Spain since
Camacho took over as manager. Guardiola is the playmaker, the brain, and his
precision passes are an integral part of Barcelona and Spain's strategy in
midfield. Picked up by Barcelona's scouts at an early age, the club's first
worry was to build up his slight frame to be able to resist the rigours of
Spanish first division football. He therefore followed a strict course of
body-building and red meat diets on top of his normal training, a course which
now seems to be paying dividends. A confident young man, Guardiola has appeared
in his own TV show together with other Barcelona players on Catalan television,
and has been club captain for several years. One of the few Catalans (or for
that matter Spaniards) in Loius Van Gaal's team, he is seen as a symbol of
Catalanism amongst local supporters. Even then, he has been linked with English
and other clubs as the Dutch manager has not always included him in his first
choice eleven. Not a great goalscorer (he has only scored four times in nine
seasons at Barcelona), his strengths are his vision, his defence splitting
passing and his changes of play, and Barcelona are not the same team without
his inspirational captaincy. Prone to injury, he has not played as many games
for his country as may be expected after making his debut against Northern
Ireland in the 1992 World Cup qualifier. Although his creative style did not
fit in well with Javier Clemente's more aggressive game, Camacho has been using
him regularly, and if he is not injured he could play a vital part in Spain's
plans this summer. |