Nolito thanks Barcelona boss Luis Enrique for reviving his career
Monday 17 October 2016 10:59, UK
Manchester City striker Nolito says he has Barcelona boss Luis Enrique to thank for propelling him to the top of the game.
Nolito will face the man he credits for turning his career around on Wednesday night when City face Barcelona in the Champions League.
Five years ago Nolito was playing for Enrique in the Barcelona 'B' team, while Pep Guardiola - now City boss - ran Barca's first team.
His career was going nowhere fast, and Nolito revealed that it was Enrique's insistence that he lost weight that got him back on track.
"I had always played carrying extra kilos," Nolito told The Guardian. "He made me see that it was fundamental to lose weight, 10 kilos, to make the breakthrough.
"He was insistent, for my own good. It was hard, but there's been a massive change. Brutal.
"He was on at me every day; he's been fundamental for my career. The cakes, the bread, the Coke: it's all good but for my profession it was rubbish.
"I'd train then eat: train, eat, train, eat. I was a fish biting its own tail. Eventually, you realise: an elite player has to be slim."
First-team opportunities were still hard to come by and he eventually left the Nou Camp in 2011 for Benfica before joining Luis Enrique at Celta Vigo in 2013.
Luis Enrique moved back to Barcelona in 2014, and wanted to sign Nolito during the summer, but the striker, perhaps mindful that Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar would be in his way, opted instead to be reunited with Guardiola.
"It was close with Barcelona but in the end I chose City," he says. "The last three years at Celta have been the best of my life but it was time to go, the right moment.
"I'd like to win something before my career is over and I think I can at City."
