MARTIN BRAITHWAITE claims he was unfairly portrayed as a troublemaker during his time at Middlesbrough, but has conceded that his ‘face did not fit’ during Tony Pulis’ time at the club.

While his former Boro team-mates prepare to return for the final nine matches of a relegation battle at the bottom of the Championship next weekend, Braithwaite is readying himself for a return to La Liga action with Barcelona when the current Spanish leaders head to Real Mallorca on Saturday night.

The forward’s career trajectory since leaving Middlesbrough last summer has been remarkable, with a spell at Leganes preceding a shock January switch to the Nou Camp.

Playing alongside Lionel Messi represents a marked contrast to the majority of his time on Teesside, when he struggled to establish himself in Middlesbrough’s first team and effectively downed tools in order to force through a move to Spain.

Having initially impressed under Garry Monk, Braithwaite found himself shuffled to the sidelines by Pulis, who branded him “ungrateful” after he criticised his manager’s tactics following loan spells at Bordeaux and Leganes. The 29-year-old was also accused of “shouting and screaming” in chief executive Neil Bausor’s office in order to force through a transfer.

A permanent departure followed last summer, and given the way in which Braithwaite has performed since, it is hard not to regard the Denmark international as ‘one that got away’.

Pulis would no doubt disagree, but while Braithwaite admits he found it difficult to fit into the former Boro boss’ preferred tactical template, he denies suggestions that he was constantly agitating for a move.

“I learnt a lot (at Middlesbrough),” said Braithwaite, in a wide-ranging interview in the Guardian that was conducted to mark the return of La Liga. “I don’t have a problem (not playing) because a manager has hard decisions. I didn’t fit – that’s life.

“It’s normal, not personal. It adds different tools for me for the future. No hard feelings. Only, things were said that are far from the truth – some really, really bad comments after I left.

“We’re human and football is full of emotion. Middlesbrough supporters are passionate and I loved that. I believe in freedom of speech. People are allowed to show their disappointment, I shared that disappointment, but people next to me know my values.

“It’s just a shame some try to create a picture of me. But it’s a part of who I’ve become, what I learnt, what brought me here (to Barcelona). It’s been a hell of a journey.”

Braithwaite hopes to finish the current campaign with a La Liga winners’ medal to his name, a far cry from the situation he left behind when he quit Boro.

His final appearance in a Boro shirt came in an EFL Cup defeat to Burton Albion that saw him play up front alongside Jordan Hugill. Now, he finds himself battling for a starting spot with Messi and Luis Suarez.

“If football’s a religion, he’s (Messi) it’s God,” he said. “Messi takes attention away. People forget to look at what’s happening around him because he’s such a threat. There’s space and we have to understand how to exploit that. It’s about intelligence.”