Barcelona would be crazy to cash in on Fermin Lopez this summer

If there’s one thing that you have to give Xavi credit for, it’s bringing through the youngsters.

He may have got plenty lot wrong while he was at the helm, but were it not for his bravery – and perhaps it was foisted upon him because of financial issues – we wouldn’t likely be marvelling at the brilliance of players like Fermin Lopez.

All of the headlines are rightly being grabbed by Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsi, but Fermin has to be in the conversation too.

In many respects he isn’t a typical Barcelona player. Like Gavi he’s incredibly dogged and he absolutely relishes a physical battle.

He’ll never give up on a lost cause and the ‘dog without a bone’ analogy is perfectly apt for Fermin given the relentlessness with which he hunts his opponent down.

With only four yellow cards to his name in 2023/24 too, unlike Gavi, for example, Fermin’s strong arm tactics are generally kept within the boundaries of acceptability. If he goes flying in for a tackle, it’s almost always because he believes he has a genuine chance of winning it.

Essentially, he can ‘put it about’ without needed to resort to the darker arts.

His eye for a chance is second to none too, offering a different goalscoring outlet when needed.

Rumours surfaced earlier in the week in Spanish media that Manchester United had supposedly offered €30m for the 21-year-old’s services.

Whilst it’s worth dwelling on the fact that Financial Fair Play is still going to cause Barca problems in the future, it would be entirely counter productive to be cashing in on the squad’s crown jewels now.

Fermin gives the team energy and purpose. He drives the team forward and his engine ensures that he’s often a supplementary presence in defence too.

An all rounder? He remains a little raw around the edges but nothing that won’t be improved upon with the experience he’ll gain over the coming years.

When everyone is fit and firing, it will be interesting to see if Hansi Flick believes Fermin is worthy of a first-team start each week or whether he’ll be seen as an impact sub who can come on and change the focus and direction of a game if required.

How well he does for Spain in the European Championship and across pre-season at Barca will also dictate how Flick intends to utilise him throughout 2024/25.

The club simply have to refuse all approaches in any event.