Eric Garcia and Sergiño Dest look ahead to United States tour

FC Barcelona are off to the United States this weekend, where they’ll be visiting Miami, Las Vegas, Dallas and New York.

And Eric Garcia and Sergiño Dest have given an online press conference to various US media at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper to share their pre-tour impressions.

Telemundo, SkySports, Fox Sports, The Philadelphia Inquirer, Goal, Talksport, Dallas Morning News and the Las Vegas Review Journal were among the media asking the questions.

Eric Garcia looking to ‘get into rhythm’

Garcia spoke first, juggling between two languages as he said “I’m really looking forward to starting this tour. It will be great to get into our rhythm for the competitions ahead, and against some strong teams … It may only be preseason, but we are really looking forward to these games. First, because we’re Barça and we always have to win, and second for our preseason preparations.”

“We are working hard to put Barça back on top, to get our identity back. We have young players mixed with experienced veterans and we all want to put the club back where it belongs. I’m sure we’ll do it. We have very clear ideas, and that’s important. The group is committed and we know what we have to do. Since he came, Xavi has been implanting a series of things. Especially getting our identity back, the way we play. These four games will help us on those lines."

Dest expects ‘fantastic experience’

Dest is excited about “my first visit to the United States with this team. It will be a nice experience and we’ll get the chance to play some good games while staying in interesting cities. We know it’ll be hot, but this is the preseason and we all have to work hard to start the season the best possible way.”

“It will be a long, intense season. We need to train and be ready … We have a lot of talent in the squad, we have to form a new generation and that takes time. We are Barça, and everyone expects the best from us. We learned a lot from all the difficult games we played last season, and this year will be different. Everyone has the added motivation of the World Cup and I think we’ll have a great season.