A 16-year-old Serbian breaks Barça's prejudices

BarcelonaThe expectation generated by Mohamed Dabone, a boy of only 13 years old, and Sayon Keita, a 17-year-old player destined for first-team playing time, has made Nikola Kusturica's development go unnoticed, but the Serbian is progressing very positively. A few days ago, the forward became the youngest player to wear the Barça jersey in an official match. At 16 years, 4 months, and 17 days old, the Serbian made his debut in the Catalan League against Morabanc Andorra.

"I feel very good and happy to be with the first team this preseason. It's an immense experience. I want to thank Joan Peñarroya and the rest of the coaching staff for their faith in me. Now it's time to keep working," said Kusturica after the match. The forward, who also played against París Basketball, Baloncesto Girona, and Hiopos Lleida, displays a maturity belittles his age. "The kid is only 16 years old. He's only been training with the first team for a few weeks, but he has great talent. He was the best player (MVP) and champion of the U16 Eurobasket with Serbia. He has great talent for this sport. If he doesn't break down, he'll be a great player, but he's still very raw for the major level," Peñarroya analyzes.

The coach from Terrassa wants to slowly develop the youngster's progress. "Sometimes, because everything moves so fast with young players, it's possible that not enough value is given to them and it seems like everything is very easy," he recalls. Peñarroya doesn't hide his concern about the new international scene, where young players are increasingly heading to the United States, where new regulations allow universities to pay very large sums of money to promising youngsters.

Kusturica, at 2.02 meters, surpassed the record set by Èric Vila, who made his debut for Barça when he was 16 years, 6 months, and 29 days old, in a match played at the Palau Blaugrana on December 14, 2014, against CAI Zaragoza. "It was very special for me. The connection we had with the fans was wonderful. I remember being on cloud nine because I was so young. I don't think any 16-year-old is ready to make his debut for a club as big as Barça," warns Vila, who signed for Dreamland Gran Canaria this summer.

"I spent my childhood in Barcelona, and it's like a second home," adds the Catalan player, who calls for protection for young players: "My environment kept me focused and protected me from outside comments," he says.

The Serbian became the sixth player to make his debut with Barça's first team after Arturas Butajevas, Raul Villar, Sayon Keita, Mathieu Grujicic, and Daniel González. This is Kusturica's third season at La Masia, where he arrived as a first-year cadet. He is now a first-year junior and will therefore also compete in the new U22 League. He will be coached by Álvaro Salinas.

"The new competition aims to put the juniors in a tougher competitive environment. The creation of this league is fantastic. Ten players will be first-year juniors and will find themselves in a slightly more demanding environment. The players must be prepared in case the coach has to look down."

A demanding premiere

Barça has a challenging debut, playing three away games in just six days. Hapoel Tel-Aviv, Panathinaikos, and Valencia Basket will serve as a gauge of the current form of a team that, after recent disappointments, needs to get off to a good start.

Barça's final preseason test ended with a 74-63 defeat at the Barris Nord against Hiopos Lleida. Furthermore, Juani Marcos was injured. The mishap adds to Juan Núñez's problems, requiring an arthroscopic examination of his right knee. After returning to the team, the point guard experienced an inflammatory reaction in his right knee, which was operated on for a torn external meniscus on March 11.

The evolution of conservative treatment was not favorable, so it was decided to perform an exploratory arthroscopy at the Hospital de Barcelona, ​​​​conducted by Dr. Joan Carles Monllau and under the supervision of the club's medical services.