MX23RW : Saturday, May 18 00:23:47| >> :120:7039:7039:

Marc Bartra: 'El Clasico snub led to Barcelona exit'

Marc Bartra reveals that he left Barcelona for Borussia Dortmund this summer because he did not feel valued by Luis Enrique last season.

Spanish defender Marc Bartra has revealed that he decided to leave Barcelona after being left out of El Clasico against Real Madrid in November 2015.

The 25-year-old came through the youth system at Barcelona and made 30 appearances during a breakthrough 2013-14 campaign for the centre-back.

Bartra only made four La Liga starts under Luis Enrique last season, however, and the Spain international has admitted that he found life tough under the 46-year-old, who favoured the likes of Thomas Vermaelen and Jeremy Mathieu as back-up to Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano.

"One of the moments was returning from the national team, after a game against England which I felt very happy about, and then being left out of the Clasico. At this moment I realised that maybe I shouldn't be so insistent with Barca," he told Radio Marca.

"Pep [Guardiola] gave me belief when I made my debut with him. Tito [Vilanova] decided I should stay in the first team. With Tata [Martino], I played practically 30 games, which gave me the chance of playing for the national team.

"I was on the rise until Luis Enrique arrived. I started well with him, but then he stopped counting on me. It was a tough year and a half for me. The boss had other priorities. I respected his decision and I stuck at it until the end."

Bartra joined Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund in June for a figure in the region of £6.6m.

ID:276613: cacheID:276613:1false2false3false:QQ:: from db desktop :LenBod:restore:2804:
Restore Data
Share this article now:
Thomas Vermaelen in action for Barcelona B on September 24, 2014
Read Next:
Liverpool, West Ham keen on Vermaelen?
>
rhs 2.0
Today's games header
Tables header RHS
TeamPWDLFAGDPTS
CReal Madrid36296183226193
2Barcelona36247574433179
3GironaGirona36236775453075
4Atletico MadridAtletico36234967392873
5Athletic Bilbao361711858372162
6Real Sociedad361512949371257
7Real BetisBetis36141484843556
8Villarreal36149136060051
9Valencia36139143740-348
10Getafe361013134151-1043
11AlavesAlaves36119163445-1142
12Sevilla361011154750-341
13Osasuna36118174054-1441
14Las PalmasLas Palmas36108183246-1438
15Rayo Vallecano36814142944-1538
16Celta Vigo36910174254-1237
17Mallorca36715142941-1236
18CadizCadiz36614162549-2432
RGranada3649233770-3321
RAlmeria36211233572-3717


Sports Mole provides in-depth previews and predictions for every match from the biggest leagues and competitions in world football.
Argentina's Lionel Messi kisses the World Cup trophy after collecting the Golden Ball award on December 18, 2022Sign up for our FREE daily preview newsletter direct to your inbox!