"There wasn't long until the Barcelona derby and Jofre Carreras had briefly abandoned the warm-up to talk to the TV. There on the touchline, talk inevitably turned to his former roommate, housemate and teammate Joan Garcia, now in goal for their greatest rivals. Carreras's answer was just about audible over all the noise and then he was off again: he had something else to do before it all started, accepting a shirt marking his 100th game for Espanyol."
"Behind them as club legend Rafa Maranon presented it, the team captains lined up for a photo of their own with the first Catalan to referee this fixture in 80 years and, way off to the left out of shot, Garcia clapped. Like everything else he did, except actually play, he did so discreetly. Joan and Jofre, both 24, have known each other for as long as I can remember, in Carreras's words."
"When Garcia collected his award as Espanyol's best player in 2023-24, and was handed a supply of sausages, Carreras also received an award two different supporters' clubs rewarding two different winners on the same day. When Garcia started being noticed beyond Barcelona, Carreras declared his friend the world's best. And when the summer heat got a bit much and, boy, did it Garcia took refuge at Carreras's. Now though they were opponents."
Joan Garcia and Jofre Carreras are 24-year-old former roommates, housemates and teammates who spent years together at Espanyol's residency and later shared an apartment. Carreras celebrated his 100th Espanyol appearance before the Barcelona derby while Garcia, now Barcelona's goalkeeper and former Espanyol standout, clapped discreetly. Garcia won Espanyol's best player award in 2023–24 and attracted attention beyond Barcelona, earning praise from Carreras. In the derby Garcia produced an astonishing, composed performance that helped Barcelona to a 2-0 victory, remaining unmoved amid the mayhem. Garcia was born in Sallent, 70 km from Barcelona, and joined Espanyol's residency as a youth.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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