The story goes that when Ansu Fati was aged six, he turned up to play football for his local team in the tiny town of Marinaleda, in the Seville region of Spain. Ansu was wearing nothing but swimming shorts, and in his bare feet it immediately became obvious to the onlookers that he had talent. Some of the locals even went straight to his parents’ house to tell them how good their son was.

His dad was a former footballer from Guinnea-Bissau and moved to Spain to look for work. After begging for food on the streets of Marinaleda he eventually found a job as a driver. His down now identifies as a Seville and it looks like his son is interested in playing for Spain after it was reported that the Spanish Government wasn’t to offer him citizenship.

Ansu is still only 16 years old, and has already made headlines across the world despite only signing a professional contract two months ago. He didn’t even play in the reserves before being called up to the first time last month, making his debut for the Spanish giants against Betis. Less than a week later he scored his first professional goal, making him Barcelona’s youngest ever goalscorer and the third youngest in La Liga history.

It wasn’t long until he had another record. On Saturday he became the youngest player to register a goal and an assist in a La Liga match. 

With so much excitement around a player as young as this it’s easy to get carried away, but he has only made a handful of professional appearances and it’s important that his experienced teammates and his club protect him.

Sergio Busquets said: “He’s very young. We know what he is capable of, what he’s doing, that the fans are excited, that people are comparing him to great players. We have to support him because we know hard times will come – he has to know where he is. He has the qualities. He’s a great player, he’s got a good head on him and he works hard. Hopefully this can be the beginning of a long history here.”

Fati has already had a few challenges in his career after breaking his leg in 2015. He bounced back from that and it clearly didn’t hinder his progress at the academy. But know he will face the biggest challenges as he enters the spotlight.

He is quick, a good dribbler that can beat defenders and livens up in the box like a hunter. He is not tall and that makes it hard for defenders because he’s fast on the turn, and it’s harder to get close to him because he’s always on the move and half turn when he receives the ball.

This is one of the exciting young talents in the game and it’s great to see that innocence and happiness when he plays. The best feeling of all is being accepted by your teammates and having the feeling you are part of the team because that is what every young player looks for.  #mmlove