Piqué and Pedro visited The Soccer Corner shop in Dallas for an event organised by Nike. Asked what it was that made Barça special, Piqué was clear: “Pep Guardiola is key to the success of the team. He is a great coach and he has an enormous capacity to motivate players”.

Pedro, who has been with Guardiola since his days in the third division with Barça B, echoed his teammate, adding: “he’s one of the best managers in the world and it’s a privilege to have him with us”.

Quality Players

The two, who went straight to the event from Dallas airport after arriving from Miami, also referred to the quality of the squad: “as well as Guardiola, we have players of such quality –like Messi. Pedro. Villa….”, according to Piqué, whose teammate backed him up: “it’s a pleasure to play with these great players”. Pedro also chose the goal he scored in the Champions League final at Wembley in May as the best of his career so far.

Piqué: “I hope to defend these colours for many years to come”

The youngsters attending the event also heard Piqué declare: “I played at the Club when I was just 7 or 8 years old. I’ve been a fan since I was a child. I always went to watch the games at the Camp Nou. This is a team which means so much to me. I am really proud of that and I hope to be defending the team colours for many more years to come”.

After speaking to their young audience, Piqué and Pedro were about a quarter of an hour signing autographs, in an event similar to that held in Miami with Andrés Iniesta and Sergio Busquets.