Pau Cubarsi says football clubs should give young players mental health support and clear development plans. The 19-year-old Spain defender described the pressure and workload facing players stepping into senior football. Players should be able to ask for help without stigma, he said, while clubs help them improve and manage demanding schedules.
Mental health without stigma
“It's the most important thing, I'd say – looking after it. Working on your mindset, working on your mental health,” Cubarsi told Reuters in an exclusive interview. A club psychologist helped him as he joined Barcelona's senior team, he said, and he has occasionally sought therapy.
“When someone feels the need to speak up because they're having a hard time, they shouldn't be judged,” Cubarsi said. “They need to feel comfortable saying, 'I'm going through a tough time, and that's OK'.” Professional support could also help players examine their thoughts and spot areas to work on before problems emerge, he said.
Pressure can contribute to improvement, Cubarsi said, but young players shouldn't become fixated on errors. “I think the pressure does actually help you improve every day, but you mustn't get obsessed with mistakes or with things that perhaps haven't gone your way,” he said.
His rise through the game has been rapid. Cubarsi made his Barcelona debut at 16 and won his first Spain cap two months later. He played every minute of Spain's World Cup-winning campaign, anchoring a defence that conceded only once and restricted Lionel Messi's Argentina to no shots on target in the final.
Opportunity and development
A young player who isn't given opportunities at 16 shouldn't lose confidence or become angry, Cubarsi said. “The key is that if, at 16, for example, you're not being given opportunities, you shouldn't get angry or get stuck in a rut, but keep fighting, keep believing in yourself,” he said.
Players at 20 are still young and should be ready when an opportunity arrives, he added. His World Cup award, he said, should inspire continued effort, not satisfaction with past achievements. “It's not something to rest on your laurels over, but rather to realise that you can also achieve great things individually and that you have to keep fighting,” he said.
Cubarsi urged clubs to take responsibility for developing young players. That work includes rest, diet, gym work and time with physiotherapists, alongside training and matches. Games often come every three days, he said, and a heavy schedule can take a toll on players who are still growing.
“Sometimes, as we're still growing, such a heavy match schedule can take its toll a bit, but you also have to listen to your body and keep working at it,” he said. Football remains a job even when players enjoy it, Cubarsi added, and professionalism matters outside training and matches, too.
Asked about the schedule, he called for more recovery time between matches, while saying workload wasn't an excuse. “Every club should also have a development plan for young players, to work with them, to look after them and, above all, to help them improve,” he said. Fernando Kallas reported the story, which Toby Davis edited.