Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski expressed his utmost pride in his young teammates following their comeback win at Valencia to kickstart their 2024-25 season with a win.
The Catalan giants earned a 2-1 win despite missing key names like Ilkay Gundogan, Pedri, Gavi, Ronald Araujo and Frenkie De Jong — as new manager Hansi Flick handed 20-year-old Marc Casado a debut, playing alongside Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsi and Marc Bernal, who are all 17-year-old’s.
However, Barça put up a strong fight to get maximum points thanks to Lewandowski’s brace.
“It was very important to start with a win in such a difficult stadium and with the problems we faced,” Lewandowski said to Movistar Plus.
“We didn’t play well for the first 20 to 25 minutes. In the first half we had problems to get close to their box but then we started playing much better and we did it with three or four very young players.
“If you can win like this with such young players it is something special and they have shown a big potential. No signs of the lack of experience, they played very well with possession and without the ball. We could have won by a larger margin, but it’s great to start the season with a win.”
