Aston Villa defender Pau Torres says being considered by Real Madrid in 2021 was “a very positive sign”, while acknowledging there were also rumours linking him with Barcelona.
Torres, a Villarreal academy graduate, made the comments in an interview with Sport before Aston Villa’s visit to Spotify Camp Nou. Unai Emery’s side have won all three of their Champions League matches this season and are the current Europa League champions.
The 28-year-old has been at Aston Villa for four seasons and is contracted until next year.
“Things are going very well and, looking back now, it was the right decision,” he said of his move to Birmingham.
Villa will face Barcelona without fear but with respect, Torres added. He said the visitors know the match will be difficult but believe “nothing is impossible”.
He highlighted Mbaye and Nicolas Jackson as players who can exploit space behind the opposition defence, while warning that Villa must be “exceptionally focused” defensively.
The fixture revives memories of the teams’ 1983 meeting, when Aston Villa won 3-0 in Birmingham to claim the European Super Cup. Villa had won the European Cup the previous year.
“In those years, Aston Villa was capable of dominating in Europe,” Torres said. “Now we are once again experiencing the feeling of competing in Europe every year. We have done many things right.”
Torres believes Barcelona remain among the leading Champions League contenders, alongside Real Madrid, Paris Saint-Germain and Arsenal. He said they had been hindered in recent seasons by playing the knockout rounds at a numerical disadvantage, despite coming close to reaching the final with a squad capable of winning the competition.
Asked about Barcelona’s high defensive line, Torres said defenders enjoy catching strikers offside when the whole team remains concentrated. He described Barcelona’s defensive options as “very complete”, despite several injuries.
He praised Cubarsi’s ability on the ball and leadership, and said Gerard Martin was strong in duels and tackling. Torres was disappointed that his friend Eric Garcia is unavailable, saying he had wanted to play against him and was pleased by the way Garcia had fought for his position.
Lisandro Martinez and Gvardiol, he added, would be capable of adapting to Barcelona, while Pedro Porro’s ball control, positioning and ability to overlap or move inside made him “very impactful”.
Torres is looking forward to facing Lamine Yamal, describing him as unpredictable and capable of producing surprises that often require more than one defender to contain. He would vote for Yamal to win the Ballon d’Or ahead of Harry Kane, although he acknowledged Kane’s statistics were excellent.
“I hope a Spanish player wins it,” Torres said. “I think Yamal deserves it, and if not this year, it will come soon.”
He also backed Rodri, whom he has known since their Villarreal academy days, as an ideal signing for Barcelona. Torres said the midfielder’s movement alongside Pedri could create problems for opponents, while recalling Rodri’s humility: despite being due to join Atletico Madrid, he once chose to sleep on a mattress in a university friend’s dormitory rather than stay in a hotel.
Torres said Rodri remained unchanged by football and joked that they had never opposed one another in an official match. They hoped to greet each other after the game, although “there’s no friendship during the game”.
He described Emery as a coach who is usually first at the training ground and last to leave, with an obsessive passion for football and meticulous preparation. Emery once told Torres that his potential should have taken him to Barcelona or Real Madrid.
When Emery joined Aston Villa, Torres said, he told him: “Come with me, our project is very good.”
Torres confirmed he had been close to joining Real Madrid in 2021, but understood why the club selected the more mature and experienced David Alaba as a free agent. Barcelona interest never progressed beyond rumours, he said, because he prefers not to know about a transfer unless it is close.
Having won two Europa League trophies and come within one step of a Champions League final, Torres wants the “Big-Eared Cup”. He accepts Villa are not favourites but believes they can compete with anyone at their best.
He was disappointed to miss Spain’s World Cup squad after a strong season, although he said the coach had faced a difficult decision and “didn’t make a mistake”. Spain’s world champions conceded only one goal, and Torres watched their matches at home.
The defender has 24 senior caps, an Olympic silver medal and hopes to return to the national team. “I’m one cap short; at 25 caps, you get a badge,” he joked.
He named Erling Haaland as the hardest Premier League forward to defend, citing his movement between centre-back and full-back, aerial threat, standing jump and ability to escape when defenders focus too heavily on him.
If he could take one Barcelona player, Torres would choose Rodri, saying he is the world’s best in his position because of his influence in defence and attack.
His ideal XI is Emiliano Martinez; Dani Carvajal, Joan Capdevila, Raul Albiol and Gerard Pique; Rodri or Bruno Soriano; Andres Iniesta and Luka Modric; Lionel Messi and Morgan Rogers; and Erling Haaland, with Emery as manager.
