Sofia Quijada
If recent reports are accurate, Ansu Fati could soon be heading to AS Monaco on a season-long loan — a move that signals the latest chapter in a career that promised brilliance but now teeters on the edge of obscurity. At 22, Fati is no longer viewed as integral to Barcelona’s future. And that’s precisely the warning shot the club should heed when managing the meteoric rise of Lamine Yamal.
Fati burst onto the scene in 2019, smashing age-related records and capturing imaginations across Camp Nou. With Lionel Messi’s departure looming, Barcelona anointed Fati as the heir apparent — even handing him the sacred No.10 shirt at just 18. It was meant to be symbolic. Instead, it became a burden.
Source: Twitter.@goal
Wearing a number previously donned by legends like Ronaldinho, Maradona, and Messi wasn’t just symbolic — it set a near-impossible standard. The weight of expectation, combined with a brutal series of injuries, derailed Fati’s progress. A serious meniscus injury in 2020 sidelined him for nine months, and though he returned, the spark that made him electric had dulled.
Even a loan spell at Brighton — where he tallied six goals and two assists across 33 matches — failed to restore his confidence or natural rhythm. Now, with Hansi Flick not including him in future plans, a fresh start in Ligue 1 seems imminent.
Enter Lamine Yamal, the 17-year-old phenom who has shattered all of Fati’s early records and become Barcelona’s primary attacking outlet. Talk around him inheriting the No.10 shirt is growing louder. But here lies the danger — history might be repeating itself.
Yamal has managed 18 goals and 25 assists in the 2024/25 season. He’s brilliant, unpredictable, and already a century-maker in terms of club appearances — far surpassing what Messi had achieved at the same age. But comparisons with Messi do more harm than good. They set unrealistic expectations that ignore individual development paths.
Just because Yamal is left-footed, dazzling in 1v1s, and has a penchant for curling strikes, it doesn’t mean he’s the “next Messi.” That myth is dangerous. Messi’s greatness was forged over time. Pushing Yamal into that narrative too early could backfire — just as it did with Fati.
Barcelona should take cues from recent history. Pedri, too, was thrust into the spotlight with relentless minutes early on. Only later did the physical toll become apparent. Yamal’s representatives and the club must think long-term, managing his workload and narrative with care.
Post-Messi, Barcelona have been chasing not just results, but icons. The urge to create a new talisman overnight has led to rushed decisions and avoidable pressure. Giving Yamal the No.10 shirt might seem like a passing of the torch, but it risks extinguishing the flame prematurely.
For now, Yamal is thriving — but the wave of form always crashes eventually.
The question is:
when it does, will Barcelona have learned from Ansu Fati’s tale, or will they repeat the same costly mistake?