Ansu Fati is BACK - and he's ready to be Barcelona's superstar
Paul Macdonald
- Updated: 22 Aug 2022 09:37 BST
- 4 min read
Ansu Fati could and should have been a bona-fide Barcelona superstar already, if injuries hadn't derailed him. But his back, he's fit, and he could be the shining light in this team in transition.
While Barca are in the middle of trying to register players such as Jules Kounde, Fati has re-emerged and has the potential to be better than ever.
His introduction in Sunday’s 4-1 victory over Real Sociedad turned the tide and gave Xavi a vital victory. Until the winger came on the match was very much in the balance, La Real giving as good as they got and having a goal disallowed for offside.
And yet when Fati emerged, things just clicked. One of his first involvements was to take an incredible first touch and backheel the ball into the path of Ousmane Dembele, who steadied himself to rifle into the net with his left foot.
Ansu Fati is a cheat code 🤯pic.twitter.com/PsJGYlr4QO
— Football Transfers (@Transfersdotcom) August 22, 2022
Two minutes later, Fati’s first-time layoff to Robert Lewandowski effectively sealed the win and allowed Barca to play with the swagger that Xavi hopes will become second nature.
Because it has been missing from long stretches of 2022, and not just in the low-key 0-0 draw with Rayo on opening day. This starting XI has had huge turnover in just two years and they are still in the process of getting to know one another. And after Fati’s introduction, it seemed a little closer to clicking into place.
Fati of course emerged as one of the most exciting, pacey, skillful 17-year-olds football had seen in some time, only to be derailed by a serious cruciate ligament injury that he has had to battle back from on more than one occasion and effectively sidelined him for two years.
Such a debilitating injury could have spelled the end for one so fleet of foot, but he didn’t miss a beat in his cameo here. And when he slid home goal No. 4 into the corner, assisted by Lewandowski, the emphatic reminder to Xavi was complete.
Ansu Fati - it's a delight to see him back.
- FootballTransfersAs the boss fills up on wide men - Raphinha, Dembele, Ferran Torres - the best of them all now looks capable of making a spectacular return to where he belongs.
Real Sociedad will be one of the better teams in La Liga this season. They had Barca doubting themselves. But the way in which Fati swept onto the pitch and killed the competition stone dead means he will be difficult for Xavi to leave out going forward.
With all the transfers coming in, it’s arguable that Barcelona’s future continues to look brightest through the prism of their La Masia talent. Gavi and Pedri continue to shine and Alejandro Balde, starting at left-back, provided an assist for Lewandowski’s early opening goal.
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But for Fati, it was a delight to see him back, no matter which team you have allegiances to. This was a sublime cameo and we might just get the Fati we thought we would prior to that horrible injury - he is still just 19 years of age.
