"I have neither the desire nor the need to be suffering."

SabadellBetween Víctor Valdés and Iñaki Peña, only one goalkeeper from La Masia has made a name for himself in Barça's first team: Jordi Masip (Sabadell, 1989). The Valladolid native, who just announced his retirement at 36, is one of those who has gone the furthest in the Squid Game that must be overcome to become an elite goalkeeper. Especially if your team is Barça. "I played four games for the first team in three seasons and I have nine titles. More titles than games played," Masip said during a conversation with ARA on a wooden bench in Sabadell's Parc de Catalunya. It looks like it's going to rain and it's cold for March. He jokes that he's brought the weather here from Valladolid, where he played the last seven seasons and made a name for himself.

Have you felt the emptiness that many footballers suffer when they retire? "It's a strange feeling. I retired because that's what I decided: if I had wanted to, I would have continued playing. What I miss most is the day-to-day life in the locker room, being with my teammates, traveling, sharing things, the laughter and the good atmosphere that usually exists in the locker room. On the other hand, I don't miss competing," he says, while the sound of ducks singing in the background. Why? "In the end, competing is about tension, nerves, meeting a series of parameters that I don't miss. In a way, it's a relief. When you compete, you're always under pressure," he asserts. "I don't have the desire or the need to suffer in these moments to achieve a goal."

Furthermore, having retired allows him to live a less strict life. "I notice it especially in my diet. I can eat a little more now than I did before. Nutrition is very important for players, and now I can eat what I want, when I want. But I try not to overdo it because I don't want to blow up like a balloon; I try to take care of myself. Plus, I still exercise. I go cycling, which I really like and couldn't do before." He's also training to become a goalkeeping coach in the future and signs up for 7-a-side football matches with his lifelong friends from Sabadell, his home. In fact, while he played for Barça, he lived in the same house in the capital of Valladolid, to which he has now returned.

Because, despite Masip announcing his retirement a few days ago, he hasn't had a team since last summer, when Valladolid didn't renew his contract. "I spent a month waiting to see if I would renew or not. I had offers from other teams and I lost them because I was waiting for Valladolid's decision. Then I returned to Sabadell and my two children [aged 8 and 3] started living near family after a long time away," he begins to explain, highlighting that the key to his decision was family-related. Only a possible return to Barça after Ter Stegen's injury—there was some consultation between Masip's representatives and the Catalan club—could change the script. "My children grew up in Valladolid, their friends are there. We've somewhat offset the trauma of leaving by being here with the family. For me, every time I received an offer, it became harder to have to leave and move the children for the year or two I had left at university. I wanted to give them stability. It's been seven years in Valladolid, and the family has also missed out on many things about them."

Masip's Two Lives

The Catalan's footballing career has been divided into two parts: as a substitute in a Barça that won almost everything—including the last treble, the 2015 Champions League in Berlin—and as a starting goalkeeper in a team that divides its adventures between the First and Second Divisions. "At Barça, it wasn't easy. Everyone wants to play, participate, and feel important, and that wasn't my case. But I valued being there, being one of them. For me, the most important thing is that they always treated me like another teammate in a star-studded squad with players who have won so many titles," he recalls.

He had Marc-André ter Stegen, then Claudio Bravo, then Ter Stegen and then Jasper Cillessen. "We talked, laughed, and discussed other games. Dela and I [José Ramón de la Fuente, the Barça goalkeeping coach] were always joking around during training. There weren't any problems. Marc and Claudio had a healthy sense of competition," he replied when asked if the bad relationship between the two goalkeepers, who at the time had to share the starting spot at Barça due to their high level of performance at the time, was true. "I learned a lot from them."

Until the summer of 2017, Barça didn't renew Masip's contract, and he became a free agent. "I'd had some offers from First Division teams, but to be a substitute. I preferred to go to a Second Division team where I could make a name for myself, play, and feel important. At that moment, I needed to play." And so it was. In his first season at Valladolid, 2017-18, the Castilian side was promoted to the First Division with Masip as an undisputed starter. "I wanted to prove to myself that I was capable of playing in that category." The Sabadell native retired after 124 matches in the Primera. He's proven himself more than enough.