Barcelona let three wingers leave the club during the summer transfer window. Ousmane Dembele and Ez Abde joined Paris Saint-Germain and Real Betis respectively on permanent deals, while Ansu Fati joined Premier League side Brighton a season-long loan.
The latter had lost his place in the starting line-up over the last 12 months. Xavi Hernandez opted for a four-midfielder system, utilising Gavi as a false left winger, which saw Fati resigned to the bench.
According to Sport, Xavi and his coaching staff felt that Ansu Fati’s progress at the club was stagnating. They were reportedly waiting for the 20-year-old to step up his game in training, but in their eyes, it did not come.
As such, the decision was taken for him to leave the club, albeit only on loan. The situation is likely to be re-assessed next summer when Fati re-joins the first team squad, as Brighton do not have the option to buy him outright.
Xavi will know best for his Barcelona squad, and he has ultimately decided that – for the time being – Fati is not of the required standard. He will have the prove to prove this otherwise going forward, but it must start with a successful loan spell at Brighton.
Fati has immense quality, coming back from a 2 year injury spell wasn’t ever going to be easy for a 20 year old. All he needed was some confidence from the coach, but Xavi never gave him that. He scored 10 goals last season even with limited playing time. Xavi should have shown him same faith he showed Dembele.