According to Spanish publication AS via reports in Catalonia, Barcelona have rejected a staggering offer of €100m for wonderkid Ansu Fati from an unnamed ‘European heavyweight club’, as per the report.
AS add that the Blaugrana received the bid last Thursday and that president Josep Maria Bartomeu made it clear that the 17-year-old sensation isn’t for sale.
It’s also hinted that the club wouldn’t consider cashing in on the starlet as they won’t be able to re-sign superstar Neymar due to the financial impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.
The report adds that Fati is seen as the future of the club, which isn’t surprising considering his phenomenal breakthrough season for the La Liga giants.
It’s claimed that the left-winger is seen as ‘untouchable’ by the club and that they’d actually favour the sale of Ousmane Dembele this summer, as this would allow Fati to be prime backup to the starting attacking trio of Lionel Messi, Antoine Griezmann and Luis Suarez.
Given Barcelona’s rich history of ensuring that La Masia academy graduates go on to play key roles in the first-team, the side should look to make Fati one of their main men in the coming years.
Fati has made 24 appearances for Barcelona this season, scoring five goals and registering an assist, the Spain Under-21s star won his initial opportunity due to injury troubles but has proved that he belongs at first-team level as the season’s gone on.
As much as we’re not surprised that Barcelona rejected a bid for Fati, we’re shocked to learn that the report suggests a top European club made a bid of €100m whilst we’re in the midst of a pandemic.