Laia Aleixandri, Barça's savior signing

BarcelonaLaia Aleixandri will play her first match against Real Madrid this Saturday (4 p.m., DAZN) wearing the Barça colors as a professional footballer. She is the only new signing this season, after her contract with Manchester City expired and she returned to Barça following her departure in 2017 for Atlético de Madrid. Now, she faces the match against their eternal rivals with "great excitement and also a bit of nerves." This is according to her younger sister, Gemma, who doesn't miss a single one of Laia's matches and is also a sports enthusiast; in her case, basketball: she plays for CB Prat. "At home, we've always watched Barça-Madrid matches; now she'll play one, and at Montjuïc, a stadium with a special history for both Catalonia and Barça in recent years," she adds. Her family, who live in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, will be there to watch.

Although Aleixandri prefers to play center back, where he has spent the majority of his career, both at Atlético Madrid and Manchester City, he can also play as a defensive midfielder. This is the position he has been filling with ease in recent matches, following Patri Guijarro's injury, which will keep him sidelined for another two months. Having Aleixandri back in the squad has been a welcome relief for manager Pere Romeu in dealing with this setback. In fact, Aleixandri has already played as a defensive midfielder on numerous occasions for the Spanish national team and also for England. "He performed very well both as a center back and as a defensive midfielder. His position is defense, very solid and decisive in tackles, but his great ability to play the ball out from the back also allows him to play as a defensive midfielder. He's versatile in both positions; his level doesn't drop when he plays as a defensive midfielder," a City employee explained to ARA.

At Barça, Patri, with whom she has a great relationship because they know each other from playing together in the Spanish national youth teams, is helping Aleixandri in that position. "Her adaptation to Barça has been very good; it's the type of football she's been playing since she was 12. It's true that in England it's more physical football and in the Spanish league more tactical, but it's the type of game she likes. She feels comfortable and feels like she's learning game after game," explains her sister Gemma. "Laia feels more comfortable at center back, but she also enjoys playing as a defensive midfielder, and Patri is helping her a lot," she continues. For example, it was the Mallorcan player and coach Pere Romeu who encouraged Aleixandri to get closer to the opponent's penalty area when she plays as a midfielder. Good proof that they were right is the fantastic goal she scored against Deportivo, a great shot from the edge of the box in the last league match. Against the Galician side, she scored a brace.

"She doesn't practice shooting on goal much, beyond the finishing drills they do in training. But she had already scored goals in youth football," her father, Xavi, explains to ARA. "She's very settled and very happy at Barça. Changing positions is also a challenge and involves adapting, showing that you can give something extra," he adds. Besides the boldness of venturing into the opponent's penalty area, Patri has also advised her that playing as a pivot requires a lot of communication: listening to both the center-backs, often Mapi and Paredes, and the other midfielders, often Alexia and Aitana, with whom she already shared a locker room at Barça. "Laia plays with great focus and is very aware of everything, but she's conscious that she needs to communicate a bit more, both with her teammates and with the coach," Gemma explains about an aspect that Aleixandri is well aware of.

Laia Aleixandri, happy at Barça and in Barcelona

The footballer is eagerly anticipating the match at Montjuïc, a stadium where she already played against Barça last season with City in a Champions League group stage match. Among the stadiums that have impressed her most is San Mamés. She has also played at the Wanda Metropolitano and Manchester's Etihad Stadium, among others. Aleixandri, who lives in Castelldefels with her husband, is happy to be back at Barça, where she has reunited with Ona Batlle, with whom she shared an apartment in England when the full-back played for United. They often walk their dogs together and their friendship extends beyond the locker room, where the midfielder also gets along very well with Patri and Aitana, as well as with the younger players, such as Vicky, Clara, and Aïcha.

She also sees her sister often. "I play at El Prat airport, so it's easier for us to see each other. I go to her matches and she goes to mine... In the summer we went to PortAventura, which we love! She can also be there for many special occasions now, like birthdays, family meals..." Gemma explains. "It's a bit strange! We're getting used to having her around!" she jokes happily.