The question is on everyone's lips at the moment is: What's happening to Sergio Busquets this year? Nowhere close to the same player of previous seasons, Busquets has lost more balls in central midfield than ever, and isn't able to get himself in the covering positions as expertly as before. Three former Barcelona players have been consulted by MARCA to explain the causes of this apparent downturn. "This season there have been several important injuries such as those of Iniesta and Messi," Julio Alberto began. "Those players who have arrived aren't yet at the level required which is normal because they have only had a short time at the club. "Great precision is needed and even a delay in the pass of a tenth of a second is noticed. "This makes Busquets' job that much harder and requires a greater effort. "His fellow midfielders are not as close as needed either, which explains a lot."
Tente Sanchez preferred to focus on on Luis Enrique's system. The team plays more stretched out now," he said. "Busquets has to run much more and arrive quicker into certain areas. "There is definitely a feeling of being somewhat mentally saturated by the huge number of games that he has had to play in recent seasons. "Let's also not forget the excellence of his game in the past few years - because it just goes to show that lowering his level even by just a little is very noticeable." Josef Fuste, meanwhile, is clear that the situation is only temporary and everything will quickly return to normal. "These things are normal in football because there are always odd times when you're not fine," he said. "Busquets may now lose more of the balls, but he is still the best in his position."Carles Puyol's iconic No. 5 jersey at Barcelona after the defender retired found themselves following a very a tough act, but the ex-captain's faith in Sergio Busquets gave him the confidence to do just that.
Having passed the 400 appearance mark for the Blaugrana, the midfielder has been looking on back his Camp Nou career and those who've most influenced him. "Puyol knew he was leaving and told me that he'd like me to take his No. 5," revealed Busquets to the club's official TV station. "It was a pleasure, I did not hesitate." Pep Guardiola, Xavi, and Andres Iniesta are just a few of the names to have made their mark at Barcelona in Busquets' time in Catalunya, and were praised for helping the Spaniard learn the game. "Both [Xavi and Iniesta] are a guarantee and taught me in every training session," he added. "Over time, I learned to listen to them with my eyes. "Guardiola has been the most important [coach], because he was the longest I've played for, then Del Bosque gave the confidence for a team to win the World Cup and European Championship. "With Luis Enrique, now we have continuity."
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