BARCELONA, Spain _ They've dined on FC Barcelona, now "los premesos" (the promising ones) got a taste of just Barcelona.
Another training session in the shadow of Camp Nou was followed by a walk down Las Ramblas, Barcelona's world renown promenade of shops and restaurants and just general life.
Finally with a morning off, the day started easily, but a late afternoon-early even training session on Field No. 4 focused on dribbling, control and feinting.
(Seumas Trull demonstrating his ball control)
The purpose of the two-hour session was to improve ball control skills, by dribbling, juggling and deception.l Jordi Perez and Ruben Della, members of Barcelona's training staff, encouraged los promesos to be imaginative and creative _ not something that can be taught.
The first drill involved a modified version of tag, requiring a certain amount of creativity to elude the player trying to apply the tag.
(Nyah, missed me!)
One-v-one games were the primary focus of the day, using step-overs, spin dribbles and the like.
Of course, Paul had to get into the act. Despite complaining about his sore back, our aging leader had to prove to himself that he's still "got it". Besides jumping in goal to defend against PK attempts, he also attempted several bicycle kicks during breaks in, including one that bounced off the crossbar. But alas, none went in. Tomorrow, he'll pay for it, and we'll all hear about it.
(Nice try Paul, but this one went wide)
After training it was back to the hotel for a quick show and then hit Las Ramblas. A 20-minute walk to the pedestrian mall that stretches from the port to the heart of the city. Decked out in their red Barcelona training tops, los promesos received more than their fair share of attention, including a woman from Saudi Arabia who asked to take their picture, a man and his wife from Elizabeth, NJ, and a mime who banged them on the head with a plastic hollow hammer.
(Gettin' ready to Ramblas)
There was more than one mime, like the one that gawked at Laura Greb, and others who inquired about the team in foreign languages, requiring some translation help. This group likely will be going back.
-
