13 fun facts about Pedri

Pedri showed glimpses of his talent since an early age and was given the opportunity to showcase his ability when he was just four.

The Spaniard's brother, Fernando, was playing at a local football school when his coach noticed a young player itching to get on the field. The young kid was making haste and asking for his family's permission to get on the field which attracted the coach's attention.

It was Pedri!

The current Blaugrana midfielder went on to join the academy of CD San Isidro when he was just six, as he continued his development as a footballer.

Pedri made his senior appearance on August 18, 2019—a month after signing his first professional contract—when he was 16 years old. This occurred in a Segunda division loss to Huesca by a score of 1-0 at home.

He created history at UD Las Palmas one more month later. Against Sporting Gijon, he smashed his first goal as a senior player. The goal gave the home team a narrow 1-0 win but the goal set the stage for a talented future for the former Las Palmas midfielder.

The winning goal against Sporting Gijon made Pedri the youngest goalscorer in the history of the team in yellow at the age of 16 years, 9 months, and 23 days. The youngster finished the campaign with four goals and five assists, which was considered the breakthrough season for the magician.

Pedri signed from UD Las Palmas in the second division for Barcelona in the summer of 2019. In September 2020, the 18-year-old made his debut for one of the biggest heavyweights in Spanish football.

Since his debut as a substitute in a 4-0 routing of Villareal, the wonderkid became a crucial piece in Ronald Koeman's eleven. Owing to his astonishing performances, the generational talent was offered a start by his Dutch manager in November when Barcelona lost 1-0 at Getafe.

And since his full-time debut for the Catalan giants, Pedri ended the season playing in 53 matches for his club. Not only that, the midfielder stepped into the limelight for La Furia Roja as well as he was picked by Luis Enrique in Spain's squad, taking up his tally to 74 games played in the season at the tender age of 18.

This is a remarkable accomplishment, especially in light of the fact that he accomplished it while only 18 years old and competing in one of the toughest football leagues in the world.

A number of awards, including the UEFA Champions League Midfielder of the Season and the Euro 2020 Best Young Player awards, were given to Pedri for his efforts during that season.

On 25th November 2002, Pedri was born in a Spanish family in Bajamar. His family relocated from Bajamar to Tegueste when he was three. Tegueste is where Pedri was nurtured.

Pedri started his amateur journey at the age of six by enrolling in the UD Tegueste academy of his boyhood club. Pedri began his Tegueste career as a centre-back before switching positions after an assessment.

The young midfielder played as a defender in the early days but was viewed as a midfielder by the hierarchy at Tegueste. When he was a youngster in 2015, he moved to Juventud Laguna.

From an early age, Pedri wanted to follow in the footsteps of Barcelona and Spanish legend Andres Iniesta. The scorer of La Furia Roja's World Cup-winning goal in 2010, Iniesta was idolized by multiple youngsters growing up since the midfielder stepped foot on the field, and Pedri was no different.

The youngster wanted to replicate the Barcelona legend on and off the pitch. Once, while getting a haircut, Pedri requested the barber to shave his head so that he could mirror his idol. While his request was rejected by his father, Pedri had to rely on his on-field skills to emulate El Cerebro.

The player once indicated in an interview with Barca TV that Iniesta was his idol growing up and he has learned an immense amount of game knowledge from watching the 2010 World Cup winner.

After joining Barcelona for a transfer fee of €5m, the Spanish international became a regular starter in Ronald Koeman's eleven. Pedri was often seen linking up with the senior players on the pitch and was known for his immaculate vision and ball control which led to him becoming the Golden Boy in November 2021 in Turin.

Owing to his exploits for the Blaugrana, Pedri was awarded the Golden Boy Award as he was considered the biggest young talent in football. Following the footsteps of his then-teammate Lionel Messi, the youngster was the first Barcelona player since La Pulga to lift the prestigious trophy.

Pedri not only managed to conquer the award but also won the accolade with the heftiest margin.

Borussia Dortmund midfielder Jude Bellingham finished in the second spot as he fell behind the Spaniard by 199 points, as the latter was voted the best Under-21 talent by 24 journalists out of 40 who cast their vote.

The Spaniard's whole family was reportedly fans of Catalan giants Barcelona.

Pedri's grandfather was considered one of the biggest supporters of the club as he laid down the foundation of Pena Barcelonista de Tenerife Tegueste, the biggest fan club supporting the Cules in his hometown.

Following that, Pedri's father also supported the Blaugrana as the whole family joined in on the admiration for the Spanish heavyweights. Multiple pictures of Pedri have demonstrated this, with his family possessing several collections with the FC Barcelona stamp on it.

Despite being a busy footballer and being available in almost all games for Barcelona and La Furia Roja, Pedri is a fan of traveling around the world, and often takes out time to visit new places.

Although he spends most of the season in Spain, the 20-year-old has often mentioned his love for traveling and exploring places with the Spain national team.

Being a professional football player, he has had the chance to tour several nations, and he has spoken about how eager he is to see new locations and encounter various cultures.

Pedri once stated that traveling with the Spanish national team has been pleasant and a terrific learning opportunity for him in an interaction with Barça TV.

Despite being one of the biggest prodigies in world football, Pedri was never distracted from school. In fact, Blaugrana's star midfielder graduated from high school with top grades in all subjects.

In 2019, the Spaniard was also offered a scholarship to study medicine at the University of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria. Although he decided to switch his attention to a career in football, the maestro worked hard on his grades.

His parents had once mentioned that had never imagined that their son would pick up football as a career because he was fascinated by academics more than sports.

The young midfielder has often expressed his liking for video games and he's clearly a massive gamer.

In fact, Pedri has acknowledged he likes playing the well-known video game FIFA during a Q&A engagement with Barça TV. 

The player has often opted for live streams and has been seen playing FIFA in his room in his leisure time. Although he quoted the football simulation game as being his favourite, the 20-year-old didn't mention any other games that he likes playing.

Since racking up achievements for Barcelona, the child prodigy has opened up about his trial with Real Madrid in his early days.

The Kopa Trophy winner was offered a trial at Los Blancos before the Catalan giants came knocking on Las Palmas' door.

Before the Spaniard made it big on the world stage, Real Madrid conducted a trial but Pedri failed to impress the scouts as the club passed on the opportunity to sign him.

“I couldn’t train with Real Madrid because there was snow on the field. In the end, they told me I wasn’t good enough. Now I am where I want to me.

“I didn’t like that they rejected me, but then it served as motivation.”

The youngster used this motivation to weave his magic on the pitch for Barcelona and the player is now producing magical performances against their arch-rivals Real Madrid.

Pedro González López is Pedri's full name however, people usually refer to him by the moniker 'Pedri'. His grandmother, who would often refer to him as 'Pedrito', (meaning little Pedro in Spanish) is thought to have given him the moniker when he was a baby. 

From Pedrito, the youngster was nicknamed 'Pedri'. He acquired this name for the quite straightforward explanation that there was someone else named  Pedro in his class when he was younger, and due to his tiny build, he was called Pedri.

The 20-year-old is also referred to as 'Pedri Potter' by his Spanish and Barcelona teammates. In fact, La Furia Roja's former coach Luis Enrique stated in a twitch interview that Pedri is 'Harry Potter.'

"How he controls the ball, physically he's a beast. Even in difficult moments. He reminds me of Andrés Iniesta. He's the player who has surprised me most at the World Cup," the head coach said.

Pedri is well renowned for his commitment to his family. He has stated on numerous occasions how important his family is to him and how much of his accomplishments are due to their inspiration and backing.

Given that both his father and grandfather were amateur football players, the Spaniard's family actually played a significant part in his growth as a player. He has also emphasized the value of remaining focused and avoiding letting success or popularity get to his mind.

He attributes this to his family, who have always supported and encouraged him. Overall, it appears that the player places a high importance on his family and their encouragement, and sees them as an essential component of his existence, both on and off the pitch.