Javier Mascherano settling well in Barcelona
Javier Mascherano is a player who used to be a first team player in the English club Liverpool. Rated as one of the best holding midfielders in the world, Liverpool did not want him to leave their club, but he decided to join the Spanish side Barcelona instead and it was because of the conditions that the Merseyside club were in. The Catalan giants, on the other hand, had a superb season in the Spanish La Liga and by defeating their Spanish La Liga rivals Real Madrid, the Blaugrana wearing side were crowned as Spanish champions.
With Cesc Fabregas being in a doubt to join Barcelona and with the Catalan giants already making one of the most expensive signings of the summer transfer window, David Villa; Barcelona had to invest something on a midfielder and Javier Mascherano was the best option that they had. The Argentinean captain was in superb form while playing for the Merseyside club Liverpool and while playing for his national side Argentina during the FIFA World Cup 2010 as well.
Javier Mascherano joined Barcelona during the summer and after two months it was seen that he had barely played for the Spanish club. However, the Argentinean finally made it to the starting lineup of Barcelona as they visited Getafe to face the Spanish side in a Spanish League match. The holding midfielder started to show the Spanish coach that he can settle in well with the team as Mascherano managed to win most of the balls that were meant to go past him.
Not only did Mascherano manag to win all those tackles that he made perfectly in the centre of the field, he also helped the team go back on level terms with Getafe. Barcelona were winning the game, but found themselves a man down when Gerard Pique handled the ball inside the penalty area and got the second yellow card. However, it was Javier Mascherano who was tackled by the Getafe player and got a second yellow to bring both the teams to the same number of players on the pitch.
After two months, Javier Mascherano said it aloud to the media that he was feeling at home. It is true that the Argentinean took time to adapt to the Barcelona environment as he was very much used to of living in Liverpool, the city in England where he started to play when he was young and came from South America. He said that he is adapting well to the environment in Spain and now he has finally started living the way each and every player is. He said that things are just a little different for him in Spain, as here the game is a little quicker in the centre of the field and in England he was supposed to win the ball and pass it on whereas over here he is supposed to hold it.
Javier Mascherano also accepted the fact that he is keeping an eye on his former club Liverpool. He said that he has not forgotten about the Merseyside club and how he spent his time at Anfield. He added on to this by saying that he loved the way how the fans treated him there and he can never forget about it. He said that it does not please him one bit seeing Roy Hodgson’s side in trouble in the Premier League at the moment, but he is confident that they are going to find their way to the top.
The Argentinean further added on to the Spanish side’s style of play by saying that he wants to feature in one of the biggest matches in Europe, El Classico. He said that he is really looking forward to the match against Madrid and he really wants to play in the “big match” and even though his side looks tired at the moment, Jose Mourinho’s men are dominating and he really expects them to win.
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