Pjanic hopes to start his Barcelona career under Xavi

 is excited to play under head coach

Xavi

, whom he calls a "role model." He hopes this will help him get his career off to a good start at Camp Nou.

Pjanic's time at

seemed to end when he was loaned to

Besiktas

last season. After coming from

in 2020, he had been unable to keep a starting spot. Ronald Koeman has since been replaced as Barca's manager by Xavi, and it looks like Pjanic will be a part of the legendary former midfielder's plans for the upcoming season.

The 32-year-old played in the recent friendly against Olot and is in the Catalan giants' squad for their pre-season tour of the United States. However, he did not play any minutes in Saturday's win against

Real Madrid

.

Pjanic's contract has two more years to go, and he's excited to work with Xavi, who did a good job in his first six months in charge, helping the team finish second in LaLiga in the second half of last season.

"As a midfielder, Xavi has always been my model," Pjanic told reporters. "I have admired him and watched him. I think he is one of the best midfielders in history, so it's a real honor to work with him.

"Over the past two years, I've had a lot of trouble with injuries and went on loan. But things are different now. I'm sure I can get back to where I was before. This summer, I've been working with a personal trainer."

Pjanic said, when asked about his future with Barcelona, "I have a contract until 2024." This year, Xavi is going to be our new teacher. I hope this season will be great for both the team and me." Barcelona face Pjanic's former club Juventus in their third pre-season outing at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas on Tuesday before rounding off their tour of the USA against New York Red Bulls on Saturday.

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