Tottenham fought back from two goals down in the Rose Bowl, but Barcelona earned the win on penalties, with Malcom burying the final kick.
Fernando Llorente wants to stay at Tottenham and prove he can be an asset.
Spurs seemed to have achieved a coup when they signed him from Swansea last summer, beating Chelsea to his signature on deadline day, but the £12 million forward struggled in his role as Harry Kane’s understudy, only managing five goals last season — three of them coming against League One side Rochdale — and manager Mauricio Pochettino is not giving Llorente any assurances over his future.
But the 33-year-old, who scored twice in a 4-1 win over Roma in San Diego on Wednesday, is keen to have another season in north London and prove his worth.
“I feel very good here and I would like to help the team more than last year and try to score more goals,” he said. “It’s not easy [for me] but I know the situation. Harry is an unbelievable player and he wants to play and always score two or three. It’s good for the team and I only have to be ready when my opportunity comes.
“If they signed me last year it’s because they wanted someone like me, no?
Fernando Llorente joined Tottenham on a two-year deal in 2017.
“Last year I started with my arm broken and it was difficult for me. When I don’t play games, it’s difficult to be fit.
“During the season, normally at other clubs I’m playing and it’s easy for me to be fit every week. But the situation here is different so I have to change my mindset, stay strong and keep working because I think I can help the team at important moments in the season. I feel very good.”
Llorente has big boots to fill whenever he is called upon to deputise for Kane, and he has been struggling with his footwear during Spurs’ tour of the U.S., borrowing boots from his teammate Juan Foyth, who has missed the trip due to injury.
“I had problems in my feet with my new ones so I’m using these ones now,” said Llorente. “They’re the same size! I’m comfortable with these ones.
“I have mine but they have given me blisters in preseason. I’m trying to do something about it.”
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