Within the current season for FC Barcelona, there have been many irregularities for the Catalan giants. Xavi’s team, both the players and his tactical approaches, have not always yielded the right results. However, it seems that Barcelona still manages to find a way one way or another.
Interestingly, perhaps no player embodies this belief better than Portuguese star Joao Felix. The man on loan from Atletico Madrid arrived with a huge buzz behind his signing, but he has thus far failed to live up to his hype on a consistent basis.
It was because of this inconsistency that he soon lost his place as a starter under Xavi Hernandez. Now, it is more often than not that his appearance in games comes from the bench. However, as highlighted by SPORT, he has begun to make Xavi question this approach.
As stated by Felix himself, he continues to remain unbothered by external noise:
“I’m used to people talking about me, whether I’m doing well or not. Whether I’m playing or not, there’s always noise, always someone saying something. I don’t really care anymore. I have confidence in myself. The best thing is not to see or hear anything and move forward.”
Moreover, he continues to prove this on the field. In the latest clash against Real Betis, he even managed to score a great goal that ensured Barcelona the lead in a very tense stalemate. With a stunning trivela shot, he turned half an opportunity into a great goal for his team.
Yet, this is not just a random occurrence out of nowhere. In most of his recent appearances, he has continued to showcase glimpses of his brilliance. This new role as a super sub actually began all the way back against Almeria last year. After his rather less-than-convincing performance, he was substituted at halftime.
The consequences of that followed in the next two league games, as he was only allowed to come on as a substitute. Even in the two Super Cup games in Saudi Arabia, things were no different for Joao Felix. It was only against Barbastro and Unionistas in the Copa Del Ray that Felix continued to start.
With his great recent displays, coupled with Robert Lewandowski’s less-than-encouraging performances, and even the fact that the next game against Athletic Bilbao is, in fact, a Copa Del Ray game, a lot of things point to Felix starting. However, the final decision lies with Xavi. Moreover, on more than one occasion, the Catalan coach has shown he likes to experiment.