Ansu Fati officially signed his new contract with Barcelona on Thursday afternoon. The Catalans announced a day earlier that an eighteen-year-old wing attacker would sign until mid-2027. During the press conference about his contract extension, Fati speaks about his decision, the interest of other clubs and Memphis Depay.
“Memphis and I understand each other very well. From the first day he came here, he tried to integrate. He doesn’t speak Spanish very well and I don’t speak English very well, but on the pitch we understand each other. I hope I can play with Memphis for years to come”, so sign ASH and Mundo Deportivo up from the mouth of Fati. The young attacker confesses that he has recently been pulled from abroad. “I always told Jorge (Mendes, ed.) that my first option was to stay at Barcelona. Offers may have come in from abroad, but it was always my intention to succeed here.”
“First I want to thank the club and the president (Joan Laporta, ed.) for the trust. It has always been my dream to succeed here and luckily I get the chance to do that. I will work hard every day to give something back to the club,” Fati continues. The attacker took over the number 10 shirt from Lionel Messi who left for Paris Saint-Germain last summer. “Another player could have taken over the number, but I was open to it. At Barcelona you have to be prepared for anything. There is no pressure, because no one is going to match what Messi has done. I have to walk my own path.”
“I still have a lot to improve on and I have to listen carefully to all the people at the club who want to help me,” emphasizes Fati, who also looks ahead to the game against Real Madrid next Sunday. “A Clásico always gives motivation, because Real Madrid is the big rival. You should always be prepared for big competitions. I am very calm, because I know that the team will give everything for the win. There is no favorite in a Clásico. For the fans, a win is very important, so we will give everything.”
Joan Laporta has a good feeling in the run-up to the match with Real Madrid. “We have just won two matches (against Valencia and Dynamo Kiev, ed.) and more and more players are coming back. Ansu and Agüero are already there and we are playing for our own fans. I want to take this opportunity to encourage the fans to come to the stadium,” said Laporta. The Camp Nou was moderately filled last week during the matches against Valencia and Dynamo Kiev.
“I think the corona pandemic has created new habits,” Laporta explains the meager spectator numbers at the Camp Nou, which can be completely filled again. “If the authorities announce that the pandemic is over, more people will come to the stadium. Tourism must also recover. The more people there are in the stadium, the more we can afford. It was very nice to see how full the stadium was before the corona pandemic.”