Xavi Warned and No One Believed Him, Flick Is Already Fed Up with Him: ‘He Only Brings Problems to Barça’

When FC Barcelona announced the signing of Pablo Torre, the club’s faithful were split down the middle. Many saw a sparkling gem waiting to be polished—a young midfielder with supreme technical qualities and potential to become a future club icon. But amid the fanfare and excitement, one voice remained cautious: Xavi Hernández.

The former manager had always viewed Torre’s arrival with skepticism. While others envisioned a budding Iniesta or Xavi in the making, the coach who once led the team to glory wasn’t convinced. He believed the youngster was far from ready to handle the pressures of elite football—not physically, not mentally, and certainly not in terms of character.

Xavi’s decision to sideline Torre and not integrate him deeply into the senior squad was heavily criticized at the time. Critics accused him of not trusting youth, of failing to support Barcelona’s traditional reliance on La Masia graduates and young Spanish talent. Yet, in hindsight, those cautious instincts may have been rooted in wisdom.

From the very beginning, Torre struggled to gain any meaningful minutes with the first team. Despite his highly anticipated arrival, he rarely featured in Xavi’s matchday squads. Those moments of magic expected from him in midfield never quite materialized on the grand stage.

And when Hansi Flick arrived following Xavi’s departure, there was hope among Torre’s supporters that a clean slate might do the trick. Flick, however, appeared even more decisive. From day one, he excluded Torre from pre-season plans and didn’t entertain the possibility of reintegrating him into the core of the team.

The message was loud and clear—Pablo Torre was not in Flick’s plans. Instead, the club opted to loan him out to a first division side, hoping that regular game time would unlock his true potential. But even that strategy faltered.

At his loan club, Torre began brightly, showing flashes of creativity and flair. But those moments were short-lived. Eventually, he lost his spot in the starting eleven, and by the final weeks of the campaign, he wasn’t even making it to the bench. Coaches at the receiving club, like Flick before them, couldn’t quite figure out how to utilize him effectively.

Behind closed doors at the Ciutat Esportiva, club executives have already admitted that the experiment has failed. Torre may still be under contract, but his future is no longer tied to the club’s vision. Offers are being explored, ranging from another loan spell to a permanent transfer—even a mutual termination is reportedly on the table.

Nobody dares say it openly, but the writing is on the wall: Torre’s days in the Blaugrana shirt are numbered. Neither Flick nor anyone in his coaching circle believes the youngster can turn things around.

It’s a bitter conclusion to a story that once brimmed with hope. Pablo Torre was supposed to be one of the new faces of post-Messi Barcelona, a player that could carry the creative load in midfield and blossom under the tutelage of legends. But the harsh reality of top-level football has caught up with him.

Xavi, once criticized for his stance, now looks like a man who simply saw things clearly before the rest of the footballing world did. He understood the pressure, the psychological toll, and the expectations that come with wearing the Barça crest.

In the current system built by Hansi Flick, there’s little room for sentiment. The German tactician demands intensity, positional intelligence, and consistency—qualities Torre has struggled to showcase. While talents like Lamine Yamal and Fermín López are flourishing, Torre remains stuck in neutral.

With Barça aiming to build a dynamic, high-pressing, and possession-dominant team, the requirements for midfielders are steep. Flick’s clear-out of players who don’t fit his mold is well underway, and Torre is likely to be among the first out the door this summer.

Now, the club is focused on reinvesting in players who better align with the new sporting project. With young gems emerging and new signings on the horizon, Barcelona is determined not to repeat the same mistake.

As the curtain prepares to fall on Pablo Torre’s underwhelming stint at Camp Nou, one can only wonder what could’ve been—had things gone differently, had the development plan been more tailored, or had the pressure not been so immense.

But in football, potential is only as good as the performance it yields. And unfortunately for Torre, his time in Catalunya may be remembered not for the magic he could have brought, but for the lesson he’s become.