Mic'd Up: The long time Barcelona and Liverpool attacking midfielder discussed Yamal, El Clasico, and the state of Real Madrid
Luis Garcia has played in a few big games over the years. From the 2005 Champions League final to a handful of Clasicos, the former Barcelona, Liverpool and Atletico Madrid attacking midfielder knows what it means to step on the pitch when the stakes are high.
And this weekend, the games don't really get any bigger. Garcia's former club Barcelona are flying this year, and with a win in El Clasico Sunday, could put Real Madrid's title hopes to the sword while also, presumably, reclaiming the Spanish first division. It would be a monumental weekend for the Blaugrana.
But Garcia hasn't been surprised by their strong showing this year.
"I think that we could expect them to do well, because the team is there," he tells GOAL. "They had the talent last year, they did a good job, even though they didn't with La Liga. They did well in the Champions League and European competition. But you can see that there was something there."
Chief among the talent is soccer's rising star Lamine Yamal. The Lionel Messi comparisons have been frequent for the 17-year-old, who already looks like one of the best players in the world. Garcia is loath to buy into that exact rhetoric, but he thinks that the Spaniard has "no ceiling."
"We can continue praising him. I think he's fantastic. He's got a lot of room to improve, of course, but I think that we need to let it be and enjoy the ride," he says.
The other side of El Clasico isn't looking too kind. Madrid were supposed to win everything when they signed Kylian Mbappe last summer. The reality has been different, as Los Blancos have struggled for chemistry and structure all season. Sunday's game could be their last chance to win something this season. Garcia suspects their voodoo might be drying up.
"For Real Madrid," Garcia says, "it's been quite a few years and we haven't seen an idea or philosophy or something that you could say, 'OK, this is a Real Madrid team.' We have got used to this 'They're gonna come back because of the history or the background or the badge or whatever.' "
It's a massive match, and Garcia will be part of the coverage, offering his perspective as an analyst. The game kicks off at 10:15 a.m. ET across ESPN, ESPN+, in English and Spanish, and ESPN Deportes.
With the league surely to be decided in a massive fixture, Garcia discussed Barcelona, Real Madrid, Lamine Yamal and more in Mic'd Up, a recurring feature in which GOAL US taps into the perspective of broadcasters, analysts, and other pundits on the state of soccer in the U.S. and abroad.
Getty Images SportON BARCELONA
GOAL: Have you been surprised by how good Barcelona have been this year?
GARCIA: I think they surprised us all. I think that we could expect them to do well, because the team is there. They had the talent last year, they did a good job, even though they didn't with La Liga. They did well in the Champions League and European competition. But you can see that there was something there.
Talents like Gavi, Pedri, Fermin Lopez, Lamine Yamal, obviously, Alejandro Balde. You could say that right now, they are probably top stars in Europe, or rising stars. You could see that there was something. But I think they surprised us all, because they picked up very well what Hansi Flick has made them do, this new style of Barcelona. We all remember the Barcelona of the Tiki Taka, possession and trying to always be dominant in the game, but this is a new style.
The possession is there, of course, the ball is always theirs, and they try to be dominant. But that intensity, the high line, I think that we were all not as confident as I think they were. They had a lull in the middle of the season, which was kind of understandable, because when you have that style and you have that shape, at some point you see the doubt. So a few injuries, players who are not involved or not getting it. But I think that right now they have dropped out from the European competition, but they are still fighting. And El Clasico is going to be the biggest moment of the season for them.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportON THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE SEMIFINALS
GOAL: Was that Inter-Barcelona semifinal one of the best Champions League games ever? Maybe you played in a better one in the 2005 Champions League final.
GARCIA: Definitely that was also special, I can tell you that! But at the end, depending how you feel and who you support, it's special. In the past few years, maybe we felt that at some points, quarterfinals, semi final, you arrived there with all expectations and waiting for the teams to go and score goals and make those crazy games. And we were a little bit disappointed, to be honest. And since the time of Real Madrid and City or Chelsea [in 2023], one of those special games with comebacks. I think they were also in this kind of way.
But again, thinking that it was going to be a very attacking team against Inter Milan, Italian teams are always more defensive, Catenaccio and all that… We found two teams that were ready to be open and to be exposed and to see what happened. I'm sure that the managers are not very happy, it's not something that you always look for. But then for the people who enjoy football and then the supporters, I think it was fantastic. It was thrilling and exciting until the last minute. So that's what we expect from football.
GOAL: I don't think a team has ever conceded six goals but also defended so well. Yann Sommer made some amazing saves, too, there were just so many big moments.
GARCIA: We are talking about four of the best teams in the world. In front of you, it's not gonna be easy, that's for sure. We saw [on Wednesday] as well, with Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain. You know that at some point, you are going to be dominated and you are going to have your moments. And the one who makes less mistakes, I think is the one who is going to go on. Inter going to the Olympic Stadium and scoring three goals and not being favorites for the second leg is something weird. But yes, that's been exciting to watch and to follow.
AFPON LAMINE YAMAL
GOAL: You must get asked some version of this question all the time, but how good is Lamine Yamal?
GARCIA: He's good! He's definitely good. I think we've been praising him for a year, since he was introduced into the first team, and we were all cautious. Because people started comparing him with Lionel Messi. With players who have a similar style of play you start thinking, "We might have something special right here." And not because of these moments of most talented skills or dribbles or assists or goals, or passing with that outside left… not because of that, it's because at 17, managing everything that is around a game like El Classico or the European Championship final with the national team. To have the personality, the maturity to make the right decisions in those moments, it's something that is not easy. You're not gonna see it in many players.
And then we can track back to players who have been fantastic. We had one with many similarities in Ansu Fati. Everybody started comparing him with Lionel Messi, he got the number 10 [jersey], then got an injury, and then struggled to get back into the first team. Now he's getting better, but it's still not easy when you play for Barcelona, to get minutes and you have to deliver in those minutes.
So I think that Lamine, because of that maturity, is good right now. I think that there is no ceiling. That is, we can't compare it with any player that you might think of. Every single game he is giving us something else, something different. Oh well, now it's speed, now he's strong. Now he battles, now he fights, and now he tracks back, and now that skill, and now he's got the right foot. We can continue praising him. I think he's fantastic. He's got a lot of room to improve, of course, but I think that we need to let it be and enjoy the ride.
GOAL: From that Inter game, they just started to kick him and foul him out of the game, and you're thinking 'This kid is 17!'
GARCIA: You try to get him out of focus, try to rush him. But he responds by saying, "I'm gonna go against you. I'm gonna try to prove that I'm better than you." And he never lost it. He was always doing what he had to be done. And that's what I'm saying, that when you're in these decision-making moments, you have to make the right one for the team.
I remember my first game. I was already 18 with Barcelona, and those 15-20 minutes I played, I was running around like crazy, like a headless chicken. I tackled three times, got three fouls. So when you start playing more and you get more experience, after two, three years, you start settling down and making better decisions, but that's when you're 23 or 24. We're talking about a kid that is 17, and he's already doing what he should be doing in five years. If he manages to keep that tranquility, that calmness when he's in the box, I don't know what we're gonna have when he's 25.
GettyON REAL MADRID
GOAL: Switching to the other side of El Clasico, Real Madrid have struggled this year by their standards, right? Can Kylian Mbappe and Vinicius Junior play together?
GARCIA: Yeah, I think so. We heard what [Carlo] Ancelotti was saying and mentioning about trying to change the shape, 4-4-2, more defensive, and then leave those two players. No one has pushed Kylian Mbappe or Vinicius Jr to defend. Ancelotti tried, he couldn't make it happen. So at some point you have to decide, "I cannot make them track back." In the football of today, if one player is not running and chasing you're gonna be at a disadvantage.
At some point, you're gonna realize that one player makes a lot of difference. You'll struggle, because your pressure is not good, because you're not tracking back, because they've got one more player in the middle of the park. If you finally decide, "OK, I understand that, so I have to make a shape or a structure strong enough to leave those two players up front." You know that they want to make the difference. The moment that those players have the ball, every single team in the world is going to be afraid of the run, of the space. The moment that they start facing you, they're unstoppable. There is no player in the world that can stop them when they face you.
We've seen it so many times. What happened? Real Madrid arrived to a point where the buildup is not good, the structure is a little bit weak, a lot of injuries. Of course, that's not something that can help. But for Real Madrid, it's been quite a few years and we haven't seen an idea or philosophy or something that you could say, "OK, this is a Real Madrid team." We have got used to this "They're gonna come back because of the history or the background or the badge or whatever," but we got used to that. They're not playing well. But in the end, they will make it. Even saying that, they've been fighting for everything, and they still have a chance to win at the weekend. Anything can happen. It's Real Madrid, so that's the way it is.