Gerard Pique insists he is ready to wait his turn for a place in Barcelona’s starting XI.
After entering pre-season by publicly vowing to bounce back from a disappointing 2013/14 campaign and restore his former status as one of the best defenders in the world, centre-back Pique has endured a frustrating campaign so far.
In addition to being dropped by Vicente del Bosque for Spain’s opening European Championship qualifier against Macedonia earlier this month, Pique was left out of Barca’s starting line-up against Athletic Bilbao.
But Pique refused to put pressure on manager Luis Enrique for a place in the team ahead of tonight’s Group F opener against APOEL Nicosia, saying: “The most important thing is for the team to win. I have never thought of myself as a starter or a substitute. Seasons are long and you just have to work as hard as you can to win the manager’s trust.”
This is only the third time Apoel have made it to the group stages but goalkeeper Urko Pardo is bullish about the Cypriot side’s chances.
Pardo, who spent eight years with Barca as a youngster, said: “We are coming as a quality unit and we want to try to get a result.”