Barcelona youngster ‘one to watch’ in the summer, Manchester United like him a lot

Barcelona prodigy Ansu Fati has not quite fulfilled or come through to live up to the hype once generated around him. The Spaniard broke through the scene under Ernesto Valverde, but an injury against Real Betis in the 2020/21 season ruled him out for several months.

Since then, hamstring and knee injuries have been recurring for Fati, who has not quite hit top gear under Xavi.

Barcelona handed him a long-term renewal last year with a release clause of €1 billion, but it seems, they are not fully convinced with him given his recent poor run of form.

Fati has just three goals in 20 appearances in the league, and is third out of four wingers in Xavi’s pecking order.

The Spaniard has been linked with an exit in the summer, with reports claiming that Barcelona are ‘desperate’ to get rid of him. Manchester United and Bayern Munich are among clubs keeping an eye on his future.

Fabrizio Romano provided an important update regarding the same, as well, claiming that Fati’s situation in the summer could be ‘one to watch out for’ during the summer transfer market.

This is because Barcelona need to offload players in the summer to balance their financial fair play situation. Otherwise, they will be unable to bring in more players, or register new contracts.

English clubs have always been interested in Fati, led by Manchester United. The record Premier League champions had the Barcelona forward on their radar two years ago, and is a player they have always appreciated.

United enjoy a ‘great’ relationship with his agent, Jorge Mendes, who was responsible for bringing back Cristiano Ronaldo to the Old Trafford in 2021. They are yet to make any direct contact regarding the player, though.

As for Bayern Munich, Romano says that they are not working on signing Fati.

Xavi has gone on record to say that Fati needs the support of the fans more than ever right now, but it will be interesting to see his development as the season goes on ahead of the summer transfer window.