The 33 is not a very football number. But with him Pedro or Araújo made their debut at Barça. The Canarian scored 99 goals and won two trebles, the Uruguayan is already one of the captains. The last to arrive with the 33 is Pau Cubarsí, who, being a minor, has established himself as a basic piece in a Barcelona that is going from strength to strength. The defender brings personality and plays with an inappropriate maturity, with and without the ball. The club believed in him, who is very culé, and Cubarsi has put both feet in the elite.
Fourteen months and 13 days separate Gerard Piqué's last game with Barcelona from Pau Cubarsí's first game. This is how long it took for Barça to get a strong, physical centre-back with magnificent feet out of the house. Clean with the ball, with a clean start from behind, and clean without the ball, noble when it comes to defending. If Cubarsí has made a place for himself in a defense with Araújo, Koundé, Christensen and Iñigo Martínez it is because he ensures something: he always looks far away. He always wants to jump lines and he has also done so in his progression, in only nine games.
The DNI says that he debuted at the age of 16 in Salamanca, in the Cup, and that he turned 17 one day after starting for the first time at Villamarín. He started playing as a left-footed centre-back without being one, until on Saturday Xavi decided to move Araújo, his best marker, so that the youth player could be the one to start the plays against Getafe.
Cubarsí likes to intervene and gives rhythm to the game – almost one pass (614) per minute played (663) – and knows how to eliminate the opponent's first pressure. It comes naturally to him, since 35% of his passes are forward. He always looks long to overcome pressures.
A central defender trained at La Masia seems to always be under suspicion due to his physique, as happened to Bartra, Muniesa or Eric Garcia. However, Cubarsí is not soft in shocks. He has already played against Borja Iglesias, Villalibre, Sorloth, Budimir, Samu, Strand Larsen and Mayoral, all great forwards. He has won duels against them, without needing to commit fouls (only 4) and without cards; the only yellow card was in his debut.
Pau Cubarsí grew up in L'Estanyol, a tiny town in Girona with just 185 inhabitants. There are no soccer fields and the school closed years ago due to a lack of school-age children. What L’Estanyol does have is a carpentry shop. The Fusteria Cubarsí has supplied furniture to the houses and farmhouses of the small town. Pau's great-grandfather, Joan Cubarsí, opened the business. Later, his grandfather and his father, Ramon, who currently runs the business with the soccer player's uncle, continued with the art of cabinetmaking. Perhaps because of his origins, Pau Cubarsí does not like to attract attention and prefers simple and not eccentric looks. The center back took his first steps with a ball at FC Vilablareix, 6.5 km from l'Estanyol, in a mixed team. He won several tournaments and children's leagues that he celebrated with the Barça shirt. Your idol of him? Leo Messi.
It didn't last long there. He was signed by Girona, who continued to train him and then, in 2018, Barça arrived. Since then he has lived in La Masia. He has gone down very well with the team. Due to age, and because they have known each other for a long time, he is teamed up with Lamine Yamal, Héctor Fort and Marc Guiu, a very young generation that supports each other a lot. Of the veterans, he gets along especially well with Araújo and Cancelo. Also with Gavi, who they miss. In the locker room they call him Cuba.
Not everything has been easy. Last summer he was on the verge of leaving for Manchester City. Barça Atlètic had signed center back Faye for three million and Cubarsí, who was 16 years old, thought seriously about it. City planned for him to first be at Girona until he came of age. The Masia sports management alerted the coaching staff and the sports leadership. It was Òscar Hernández, Xavi's brother and second, who called the player to convince him that he had a future. He did not need any more calls from Pau Cubarsí. One day before the preseason with the first team began, he signed for three years, until 2026. Deco was an important part of the process. Currently the club and his agent are negotiating for him to sign a new contract as soon as he turns 18. The current clause is sweet: 10 million. Nobody wants to lose him and he doesn't want to leave.
