Even though he came through the ranks at Espanyol, Marc Bartra was completely accepted as one of their own by Barcelona supporters.
This was one of the few occasions in which this event has happened. It was highly anticipated that Bartra would go on to become one of the finest in the Barcelona ranks. However, he has surprised many by completing a move to Borussia Dortmund at the end of the 2015-16 season.Bartra has just brought an end to 6 years at the Camp Nou as a first-team player.
Recalling back at the reasons for his exit,Bartra says that he will not talk anything bad about manager Luis Enrique. Since his return to the club as a manager, Enrique has won a lot of plaudits and many even feel that the team are playing better than the Guardiola days. They have certainly been as successful – if not better – than Guardiola’s team, while not getting the same amount of headlines. Bartra has seen the manager successfully take the pressure away from the likes of Lionel Messi, who has been the main focus over the last decade. Instead, he has been able to get players like Neymar and the Luis Suarez performing on an even better level.
Bartra says that the move to Dortmund came quickly and there was no looking back.“It was all really quick. As soon as we received the offer, we valued it as a really good one, and it filled me with excitement. It’s an important challenge for me. It was a big step, but seeing how last season was, I imagined it would happen. I think this option arrived at a really good time, in which I have gone through everything. I’ve had good years at Barça, and tough years, but in general they’re moments which have made me mature,” said Bartra.