Barcelona forward Ansu Fati has not been enjoying the comeback season he had hoped for, following a series of injuries last campaign. Increasingly, there has been talk that Fati might be sold by the club this summer – his father, Bori Fati, sounds just as likely to take him away.
Fati has not had the chances he expected this season, completing just two 90 minutes this season so far. He has lost his place in the Spain squad, and has both started just over a third of Barcelona’s games, while appearing in just over a third of their minutes.
Speaking to Cadena Cope (via Marca), his father Bori Fati confirmed that he would be meeting with agent Jorge Mendes, although he did say this was a regular occurrence.
“Yes, in a month for sure. We see each other two or three times every month.”
He was less certain on Ansu’s immediate future though, although he admitted his desire to remain at the club.
“For Ansu yes. It will depend on what Barca wants. If it’s for me, I want to see Ansu succeeding, because he is a guy who comes to succeed. There are things you can’t discuss.”
“I as a father am angry, yes. Maybe I’m not right, but I don’t have a problem with that. Everybody knows who Mendes is. He told me two years ago that he had offers and Bartomeu didn’t want to listen to them.”
He also confirmed he had met with the club’s hierarchy during the international break
“I called Mateu. I think we deserve much more. When you are at Barca you know where you are and that there are many internationals. But we are talking about Barcelona’s [number] 10.”
Asked why Ansu was not having the minutes Bori thought he deserved, he pointed the questions in the direction of manager Xavi Hernandez.
“Good question, ask him. I don’t have an answer for that either and he as a coach will have his reasons. Maybe he thinks he lacks things like defending and I understand that.”
His belief is that not only is Ansu fully recovered from his injury issues, and ‘more explosive’ than before, but that he was not receiving the rewards that his performances deserved.
“If this continues like this I’m going to Seville, that’s it. I didn’t go to the game against Madrid, why not. Right now I’m not going to the stadium anymore. I have my box and I’m not going anymore.”
If Barcelona were thinking of selling Ansu, then Bori’s words may well help their cause. While perhaps Ansu has not been given a consistent run in the Barcelona side in order to pick up the sharpness that he needs, it is also true that he has not shown enough in 2023 to be selected ahead of others.
