Over the years, many players coming out of La Masia have been hailed the next best thing, only for them to struggle to live up to the hype.
They’ve also often been linked to clubs in England, like Manchester United, and that has been the case in both instances for Ansu Fati.
The young forward has struggled with injuries, which have slowed down his progress to the point where there could be a real opening for someone else to sign him going forward.
Whether that is Manchester United remains to be seen, but one thing appears certain, according to Sport, and that’s the Red Devils still being interested in him.
The outlet publish a long article on the matter on Friday, where they make it clear that the Old Trafford side are ‘interested in the future’ of the player, and are keeping a close eye on him ahead of the summer.
It’s actually more than that, as the English club ‘have him as a priority’ if Barcelona open the door to let him leave in June, and they are ‘very interested in taking over’ his services.
Their desire to sign him is ‘already on the table’, and while Barcelona currently don’t want to listen, the coming months ‘could be decisive for what could be one of the summer operations’.
It’s well known that Manchester United do need some attacking reinforcements, although that would primarily be a new number nine, ‘but the truth is that the English club would like to explore the Ansu option’, as they know he isn’t playing as much as he would want to.
On top of all this, there’s the fact that Jorge Mendes, his agent, has ‘very good relations in Manchester’ and is ‘fully aware of the movements’.
While Ansu has recovered from his injuries, Xavi hasn’t played him as much as expected, and this is a situation the footballer and his entourage don’t particularly appreciate.
The arrivals of Robert Lewandowski and Raphinha also haven’t helped, and neither has Ousmane Dembélé’s resurgence.
The young forward and those around him are ‘very aware of what happens in this last stretch of the season’, and he does want to stay at Barcelona, but Mendes ‘has been accumulating interest in recent months’.
There is a lot of interest from England, but ‘the most serious is that of United’, who believe ‘there may be room for negotiation as long as Ansu gets tired of waiting to play’.
At the end of the day, though, it all comes down to Barcelona, who are protected by the player’s €1bn release clause, making it impossible for him to leave if they don’t want to sell.
However, they are also strapped for cash, and will need income in the summer, and there are ‘few footballers who can earn them interesting amounts’ in their squad.
Fati would be one of them, but it’s worth pointing out once more that there is currently ‘nothing discussed or planned’ at this moment in time.
