On Sunday, Barcelona will host Villarreal at El Madrigal, hoping to build off of their 2-0 victory against Cadiz. Former Barcelona defender Jorge Cuenca, who has started the team’s first two league games this season, is looking forward to this matchup. Cuenca spoke with Mundo Deportivo before to the game about his time at his previous club and with former teammates like Pedri and Ronald Araujo.

Jorge Cuenca lauds Pedri, Araujo

“I played with Pedri in the national team and also with Eric and they are great teammates,” Cuenca said when talking about Pedri.

Villarreal’s central defender has been quite effusive in his support of Ronald Araujo.

Cuenca looks up to the Uruguayan since they were teammates on Barça’s reserve squad at the same time.

“Ronald Araujo deserves admiration, especially as a person while as a player he is an example to follow. I get along really well with him on the field,” he said.

“When we were in the second team, we played together for a long time as a starting couple and he’s a great teammate and a great captain. He deserves everything he achieves,” he added

On a return to Barcelona

Cuenca’s tenure on the field with Barcelona was brief, as he never played a competitive game for the Catalan club.

Cuenca has expressed his satisfaction with his current position at Villarreal, although he has been cagey when questioned about a possible return to Catalonia.

Football is an extremely unpredictable sport. He said, “Next year, you never know where it will be, and what I’m fighting for is the chance to play at my highest level and grow into a first-team footballer.”

“I have a lot of drive and ambition, and I couldn’t be happier with my situation at Villarreal. This is the best I can do right now. There is still a long way to go in this marathon, but I intend to give it my all. Cuenca said, “I’m 23 now, and I want to try to go as far as I can.”

When asked how the Barcelona defense is right now, the Villarreal star spoke highly of the team’s efforts last year.

It was exceedingly tough to score goals against them last season in LaLiga, and their stats were really impressive. It was clear that the work had been done properly on the field. “They did a fantastic job,” he said.