Julio Tous: ‘We have an incredibly committed team’

In an interview for Barça One, the first team’s head fitness coach also lauded Barça’s La Masía for the players’ coordination and cognitive skills

he new head fitness coach for the FC Barcelona first team is Julio Tous. Since preseason began, he has been hard at work to get the footballers in Hansi Flick’s squad into the best possible physical condition. He is ably assisted by Pepe Conde and Rafa Maldonado, who manage the on the pitch work, while Germán Fernández focuses more on neuromuscular and strength training, as well as helping the specialists in rehabilitation and injury prevention.

He is also working closely with the coach, with whom “it’s a pleasure to work with given he hasn’t changed our methods at all”. “My past experiences have shown me it’s very hard to find a coach you get on that well with and who allows you to influence virtually everything. There is a very close relationship with Flick, and he believes in both the physical side and its effects on the player and their performance”, explained Tous

After weeks of intense work that Julio Tous mentions “is a huge challenge and test, but also a dream”, he appears “totally convinced it will work, because we have a team, on every level, with an incredible level of commitment”. Furthermore, he also lauded the La Masía players and their condition, stating that “the Barça school produces outstanding coordination and cognitive skills. They can do anything you put to them. When I was with other teams and worked with players produced by La Masía it was evident and incredible”.

With a focus on work to prevent injuries, the aim is to give the player the skills to feel assured about giving their all for an entire match. “Players are being trained more and more, and there has been a radical change in the last five years. This also has an effect in terms of injuries, as the load is very high and systematic work is the only solution. And to really emphasise that players have to do something involving preventing injuries on a daily basis in particular”.