Joao Cancelo reveals his Barcelona idol and which team-mate has impressed him most since joining from Man City

The Portuguese international has confessed he has been a Barcelona fan since childhood and put all-time great Ronaldinho on a pedestal. Following his season-long loan move to the Spanish side from City this summer, which contains an option to buy clause, the 29-year-old says Barca teammate and Atletico Madrid loanee Felix has stood out among the first-team squad this season.

Cancelo told Spanish publication Sport: "For me, I grew up watching the best soccer team play, which is Barcelona in 2009, and many of my idols played here.

"My biggest idol has always been Ronaldinho Gaúcho. He was the player I most liked to see play on television. Because of his pure talent, because of his magic. What he brought to me was incredible.

"With the rivalry that exists here between Barcelona and Real Madrid and he got the Bernabéu to applaud him. There was something about him [Ronaldinho] that made him different from the rest."

He added: "[Joao] Félix is pure talent. There is a lot of talent in Portugal, in general, but Félix is one of those who can really make a difference."

Cancelo's time with City looks like it could be over. The defender was shipped out to Bayern Munich on loan for the second half of last season after falling out with Cityzens manager Pep Guardiola. However, in the summer Guardiola appeared to soften his stance on the former Juventus man but going by Cancelo's latest remarks, he appears to have his heart set on a permanent move to Barcelona. Whether or not they can afford him next summer remains to be seen.

Barcelona ended the year in fourth in La Liga and return to league action on January 4, 2024, away to Las Palmas. That starts a busy run of games where they play Barbastro in the Copa del Rey three days later, followed by their Supercopa de Espana semi-final clash with Osasuna on January 11.