Barcelona’s Junior Firpo has seen little time on the pitch under Ronald Koeman, and has now opened up about his situation at the Catalan club.
Since joining Barcelona in the summer of 2019 under Ernesto Valverde, and since reunited with Quique Setién, Junior Firpo’s playing time has not been a large amount. In fact, he has only started 17 out of the 56 games in which he was part of the squad, having spent 25 of those games on the sidelines since he joined the Catalans.
Barcelona’s game against Eibar this Tuesday was the second game in which he had made Ronald Koeman’s starting lineup, with the first game being the 4-0 win away at the NSK Olimpiyskiy in Kyiv to secure Barcelona’s advancement to the Champions League’s round of 16.
After the 1-1 draw at the Camp Nou against Eibar, with the goals scored by Kike García for the guests and Barcelona’s Ousmane Dembélé, Junior Firpo opened up about his situation at the club. Ronald Koeman voiced his frustration after the game, and Ronald Araujo took responsibility for the concession of the goal that broke the deadlock early into the second half.
“I try to train as hard as I can, and I’m here – although it’s difficult because Jordi [Alba] plays at such a high level [of football],” he said post-match, according to Spanish news outlet Mundo Deportivo.
Firpo was also frustrated with how the game went for the home side, having had 16 shots, but only five on target.
“We have to create a thousand chances to score one goal and even miss the most clear opportunities – they take advantage of one mistake and score. [However] there’s still a lot of league [football] left, and nothing is over yet,” the 24-year-old explained.
The defender, holding a Spanish citizenship despite being born in the Dominican Republic, has a contract with Barcelona until 2024, having signed for 18 million euros plus add-ons from fellow LaLiga Santander side Real Betis.
