Cristian Tello on the Negreira case: “We wouldn't have needed Negreira, we were the best”

Cristian Tello has called time on his professional football career at the age of 35, bringing an end to 16 seasons in which he wore six different shirts. The Catalan winger came through Barcelona's youth ranks, left for Espanyol, returned to the club and eventually established himself in a first team packed with legends. Now, in an interview on the late-night show 'Otra Ronda' on Radio MARCA, Tello looked back on those years and addressed one of the issues that has followed that generation ever since: the Negreira case.

• Tello retired at 35 after 16 seasons as a professional and six clubs during his career.
• He says Guardiola made him see qualities he did not perceive in himself early on.
• He insists that Barcelona team did not need Negreira to win matches.
• He reveals he never heard the former refereeing official discussed in the dressing room.
• He highlights Lionel Messi as the greatest player in history and the privilege of sharing a team with him.

Cristian Tello retires and revisits his Barcelona years

Tello's career came to a close at Saudi Arabian side Al-Orobah, but his name will forever be linked to Barcelona. A product of La Masia, the winger had to move to Espanyol before returning to the club of his life and making the definitive leap to the first team. There he shared a dressing room with a generation that dominated Spanish and European football for years, and the memories remain unforgettable.

Looking back, Tello makes no secret of how much his Barcelona spell shaped him. Not just because of the trophies, but because of the players he shared the squad with and the coaches who trusted him when he was still a teenager making a name for himself through his pace.

Guardiola spotted Tello and opened the door to the first team

Tello's first big breakthrough came with Pep Guardiola in charge. The coach quickly identified the winger's talent and made sure to tell him so in training. Tello recalls Guardiola repeatedly saying he was not aware of the qualities he possessed, especially when he came up against defenders such as Dani Alves, Adriano and Carles Puyol in sessions.

The winger explains that his fearlessness and his speed allowed him to beat those markers in certain situations, and that this attitude against world-class players was the key to earning a place in the first team. In fact, Tello believes that boldness is what ultimately carried him to the top squad.

Guardiola took me and told me I wasn't aware of the qualities I had. He kept telling me: you're not aware.

Tello defends Guardiola's Barcelona against the Negreira shadow

The conversation on 'Otra Ronda' inevitably turned to the Negreira case, the refereeing scandal that has followed Barcelona because of payments to the former vice-president of the Referees' Technical Committee. Tello admits it hurts to see that era of dominance linked to that name, and he firmly defended the level of that team.

The former player believes anyone who watched that Barcelona side knows a team like that will never be seen again. He went even further, stating that neither Negreira nor anyone else was needed to win matches, because the quality of the squad was beyond any doubt.

On top of that, Tello made clear that during his time inside the Barcelona dressing room he never had any knowledge of the matter. He says he never once heard Negreira mentioned, and points out that players simply do not talk about referees inside a dressing room.

The 100-point league title and the lasting memory of Messi

Of all the titles he won with Barcelona, Tello picks the 100-point LaLiga crown lifted under Tito Vilanova. The winger recalls how difficult that campaign was, but that the team responded with historic consistency to reach a figure that once seemed impossible.

And among all the players he shared a dressing room with, Lionel Messi stands apart. Tello says being able to train and play alongside the Argentine is one of the great privileges of his career. He has no doubt in calling Messi the greatest player in history and highlights the ease with which he solved situations that would be extraordinary for anyone else.

Tello remembers how easy Messi made everything look: how he won matches, how he helped his teammates and how he turned what seemed exceptional into something normal. For the now retired winger, the Argentine was and always will be an unrepeatable player.

Frequently asked questions about Cristian Tello and his career