Not only La Masia looks after the studies of young footballers

BarcelonaA few days ago, Espanyol tweeted to congratulate Eloi Tost for achieving a 12.908 on the university entrance exams, the highest score of the seven players from their youth academy, all of whom passed, who took the university entrance exams (PAU). The Reus-born U19 B forward, who resides at the club's residence, needed a high score to enter the aerospace engineering degree, and Espanyol has given him every opportunity to obtain it. as in La MasíaDani Jarque, too, is given a lot of emphasis on his studies.

"At the club, we believe that education is vital for the future of the kids. The academic aspect is just as important as the sporting aspect," Alex Garcia, head of families and player support at Espanyol's youth academy, explains to ARA. He receives the grades of all the La21 players.This is the name of the entity's grassroots football team–, the instructors and discusses the issues with each of them: "We analyze them, see where there's room for improvement, reach agreements... We can't ask the same thing of everyone, but we insist that academic effort is undeniable at Espanyol. And they understand. In fact, there's been a notable increase from the first to the second evaluation. Eloi's 3 to 9.58."

Some are in secondary school, others are in vocational training, and up to 25 have completed their baccalaureate this year. Many are university students: it is the Puado caseRoca or Gragera, in the first team; or Lluc Castell, Almansa, Hinojo, Jan Moreno, or Ferran Gómez, in the reserve team. Àlex Garcia himself earned a degree as a top-level footballer—he played for the blue and white team—and, 30 years later, he's supporting the youngsters of La21 throughout their development. He's also the child's guardian at Espanyol.

Balancing studies and football

The club has agreements with some centers, such as La Túrbula—the school that shares facilities with the residence—which allows for class schedules to be adapted to training and for students to combine studies with sports. In fact, it's common for the press room at the training center to double as a classroom before sessions, and for the youngsters from La21 to do their homework or catch up on missed classes at the same tables where journalists ask Manolo González.

Àlex Garcia also acts as a liaison with families, a key element in his process. "Their surroundings determine their personality," he says. "It's vital that they feel close to us. We maintain constant communication to build trust and encourage their collaboration. If they detect a problem or a drop in performance at school, they immediately call us to address the situation; we go to the club psychologist, we seek out extra classes... whatever is necessary," says the former Blue and White player, who is also part of the 170 young players in the Perica youth academy. "Here, children aren't numbers. They have to feel protected and supported, on and off the field," he concludes.

The Values of La21

Their work is directly linked to the La21 Values initiative, which went viral a few days ago when it was revealed that all of Espanyol's U12 players were wearing black boots in the LaLiga FC Futures tournament. This is a club policy that affects all teams up to the U19 A level and aims to promote equality and solidarity among teammates, ensuring that there are no differences in status based on the brand or price of footwear.

It is one of the measures of the La21 Values ​​project, conceived by Fran Garagarza and directed by Michael Paule-Carres, which aims to educate young people with the values ​​that identify Espanyol and create an identity as a team. Keeping your mobile phone in the locker at the training ground, shaking hands with the statue of Jarque every day, greeting all the club's employees, and being respectful when celebrating goals are other rules to follow. Also making good use of social media is important. That's why Santi Gilabert, from the communications department, regularly gives classes on how to use them.

"When someone sees a card to address the referee, we talk to him. We analyze the actions and, if an infraction occurs, we discuss it directly with them," exemplifies Paule-Carres, who receives a weekly feedback from the coaches of each of the youth team players. Inappropriate behavior is being addressed, but certain misconduct has led Espanyol to release some players for failing to adhere to its values, which are non-negotiable in La21.