Barcelona wanted to keep Chico this summer

Almería central defender and Spanish youth international José Manuel Flores "Chico" (21), who played last season on loan with Barcelona B in the fourth division, has said in an interview with Catalan sports paper Sport that Barcelona wanted to keep him this summer:

"Once the season ended, Guardiola offered me to start the pre-season with the first team but Barcelona and Cádiz, the club I still belonged to, couldn't reach an agreement.

At the same time, I received a proposal from Almería, that gave me the chance to play in the first division, and I accepted that. I would have been delighted to stay with Barcelona, although for me everything in the end also turned out well."

In an interview with Catalan sports paper El Mundo Deportivo, Chico said that the initial plan was that he would play with Barcelona Atlètic: "I talked two or three times with Barcelona Atlètic coach Luis Enrique and his assistant Joan Barbarà. They told me back in June that they counted on me for their new project and I told hem that if I wouldn't find another deal, I would be happy to continue, but in the end things changed.

Everything has gone really fast over the last months. I didn't expect this because I went from Barcelona's second team to a first division club and I knew the competition would be hard. But I immediately had playing minutes, I scored my first goal and I was called-up for the Spanish under-21 team. I cannot ask more but this is not a time to relax. I'm delighted but the most dificult things is to keep this level now.

In the first division you have more space so in that sense it's more easier, but on the other hand the quality of the players is very good. You're playing against the best players of the world, so it's a big change. Although the level of Barcelona's second team was already quite high and almost all of them could play in the first team. And Guardiola knows that, that's why he already promoted Busquets, pedrito and Víctor Sánchez.

Barcelona has been a very positive experience for me. I developed as a player, although I came from a higher division. We won the league and promoted, I got to wear the Barcelona shirt and I got to know a lot of people, players and members of the technical staff.

When I said goodbye to Guardiola, I told him that it was a pleasure to have known him and to have learned so much from him. Guardiola wished me luck. I knew him as a player, but as a person and as a coach he's even better. He knows how to deal with a group and how to treat the players. I wish him the best. He has very clear ideas, he's a winner and he can transmit that to the group. Barcelona made an excellent choice."

Read more:
Barça B - Official: Chico to Almeria
Seven B players taking part in pre-season
Barça B: Chico could continue and be promoted