Barcelona starlet Ansu Fati has enjoyed a stellar start to the season, scoring his first La Liga goals which have seen him catch the attention of the Spanish Football Federation. The 16-year-old has already gained his Spanish passport and is expected to play for the Spain Under-17 side at the World Cup in October and November.
If he does feature at the World Cup it would be a blow for Barcelona as he would miss up to seven games for the Spanish champions, including the Clasico against Real Madrid. Spain’s Under-17 coach David Gordo told El Larguero this week that “the idea is that Ansu can play the tournament.”
Yet Ernesto Valverde did not seem so keen when he spoke about Ansu. He said it would be a “setback” to lose the youngster after his bright start to the campaign. Marca now report that Ansu could actually miss the Under-17 World Cup. They reckon that he could go and play for the Under-21 side instead. The concern is that it might not be good for Ansu to drop down to Under-17 level after playing in Barca’s first team in La Liga.
Sport and Cadena SER also report that Ansu is wanted by the Under-21s and reckon that may suit Barcelona more. His call-ups would occur during the international break and would mean he does not miss any games for his club. Spain Under-21s play Germany in a friendly on October 10 and Montenegro in Euro U21 qualifying on October 15. However, Sport also report that if Ansu is called up by the Under-17s, Barcelona will have to release him. The champions will not be able to prevent him from going no matter how much they dislike the idea.
Spain are due to announce their final squad for the Under-17 World Cup on October 16, the tournament in Brazil starts on October 26 and runs until November 17. Meanwhile, Ansu could be given another chance to impress for Barcelona on Saturday against Getafe as Lionel Messi is out injured and Luis Suarez is struggling for form. The teenager enjoyed a bright showing off the bench last time out against Villarreal, and if he continues to impress in La Liga it will strengthen Barca’s desire to keep him with the first-team squad.