Xavi's stance on Fati exit after Barca boss questioned if transfer was a 'joke'

31 August 2023 , 08:04

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Xavi had seen Fati as the 'present and future' of Barcelona (Image: AS TV)

Ansu Fati is joining Brighton on a season-long loan deal from Barcelona in a transfer which is unlikely to be met with the approval of Xavi Hernandez.

The Blaugrana boss has consistently insisted that the 20-year-old was part of his plans for this season. Tottenham and Chelsea had both been in talks to sign the forward but he is now on course to join the Seagulls.

The Barca youth product featured in 36 of the team’s 38 La Liga outings last season, albeit only 12 of them were from the start. He had fallen behind Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres in the pecking order for the central forward position in the side’s 4-3-3 formation.

The forward became the youngster Barca player in 80 years when he made his debut as a 16-year-old in 2019 and went on to become the youngest Spain international in 85 years – while being the youngest ever scorer for both his club and national side.

His record-breaking form continued in his teenage years as he became the youngest ever scorer in El Clasico before becoming the youngest scorer in the Champions League, while he scored from 11 goals of his first 16 shots of his career.

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The forward’s remarkable progress was halted in the 2020/21 season after he suffered a serious knee injury which ultimately ruled him out for the remaining six months of the campaign and has seen him struggle to maintain regular fitness in the years since.

Ansu’s cache remains high though – evidenced by the fact that he is under contract at the Catalan giants through to the summer of 2027 and that they are only willing to allow his exit on a loan deal, without the option to buy for Brighton.

Have Your Say! How many goals will Ansu Fati score for Brighton this season ? Tell us what you think here.

Ansu Fati looks set to complete a deadline day move to the Premier League (Getty Images)

He was also linked, perhaps somewhat speculatively, with their arch-rivals Real Madrid earlier this summer. When that possibility was put to Xavi, he fumed: "This is a joke, isn’t it? I have already been very blunt about Ansu. Debates are being generated that make no sense. Ansu is an important player and is part of the club’s heritage, now and in the future."

Those comments from the Barca boss sum up his thoughts on the player and his belief that he still had a role to play at the club. However, the Blaugrana’s pressing financial situation meant they had to move players on to register new players – including their impending loan signing of Joao Cancelo from Manchester City.

Colin Millar