Ansu Fati Addresses Premier League Interest And Speaks On FC Barcelona Future Amid Exit Rumors

FC Barcelona forward Ansu Fati has spoken on his future at the club amid rumors linking him to a move away from Camp Nou.

The 20-year-old broke through to the Barca first team from the La Masia academy aged just 16.

Almost four years on from the time when he broke a number of youngest goalscoring and appearance maker records in Spain and on the continent, however, Fati is facing a rough time on the fringes of Xavi Hernandez’s first XI.

Reports have claimed Manchester United and Bayern Munich would like to buy him, and there have also been accusations that the club is trying to force Fati out of the club through leaking news of their supposed interest.

Barca need to shave €200mn ($213.7mn) from their wage bill to navigate La Liga’s salary cap too, which has led to suggestions they need to make a big player sale to balance the books ahead of 2022/2023.

Speaking from the L’Antiga Fabrica Damm in Barcelona on Monday, however, Fati confirmed he doesn’t wish to be the star on the chopping block.

“I have a contract until 2027 and hopefully I can spend even more years here. I want to spend many years at Barca,” he stated.

Unlike MVP Ferran Torres, Fati did not make the most of a rare start given to him by Xavi in Sunday’s 2-0 win over Cadiz at Camp Nou. The youngster was clearly frustrated when brought off by his coach near the end, and explained his reaction.

“Yesterday I left [the field] angry because sometimes I think that I don’t give back everything that the people at the Camp Nou, who support me so much, give to me. I am very grateful and happy to be at the club that I love and in which I grew up,” Fati explained.

With an important second leg tie against the Mancunians scheduled for Thursday, Fati also said that Barca should not be “afraid” of crashing out of the Europa League against Manchester United following a thrilling 2-2 draw at Camp Nou last week.

“We are Barca and we shouldn’t be afraid,” Fati said. “The team is doing very well, they are also going through a good run [of form] and we know it will be difficult, but we are going with the idea of ​​going through the rounds and continuing with good dynamics,” Fati said.

Fati’s stance regarding his future is in line with what his coach thinks about the situation. Xavi has constantly backed his forward in public and demanded both time and patience with him, even becoming irritated with being asked to address rumors about his departure.

With dedication to the cause from Fati and backing from his manager, it is highly likely someone with his talent ends up returning to the kind of form he put together before his injury problems in the near future.