Former FC Barcelona prodigy Ansu Fati has agreed to join AS Monaco permanently according to transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano and Mundo Deportivo, who both citted anonymous sources.
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Former FC Barcelona prodigy Ansu Fati has agreed to join AS Monaco permanently according to transfer market expert Fabrizio Romano and Mundo Deportivo, who both cited anonymous sources.
The Ligue 1 outfit will exercise its $12.8 million (€11 million) option to buy Fati outright, which was agreed when the Spaniard joined them on loan last summer.
Furthermore, Barça retain a sell-on clause for any future permanent transfer involving the La Masia graduate, who at 23 should still have his best years ahead of him and perhaps another big move if he can continue to kick on in France.
Fati has shown signs of promise again in the French top flight, where 11 goals in 25 apperances across over 1000 minutes helped Monaco finish seventh and qualify for the Conference League.
Still, looking likely to wave goodbye to Fati for good while still hurt some Culers, who had such high hopes for him when he broke through to the first team as a 16-year-old in 2019.
Smashing a number of youngest goalscorer records across all competitions national and international, he was the Lamine Yamal of his day.
Like Gavi, though, serious ACL and knee injuries blighted Fati’s progress at the Spotify Camp Nou meaning he was never able to live up to the weight of the number 10 shirt handed to him when Lionel Messi departed in 2021 and Fati signed a bumper new contract.
Lamine now has that pressure as a teenage phenomoenon, as Fati looks set to close the Barça chapter of his career.
Ansu Fati’s departure frees up salary space for FC Barcelona
With Anthony Gordon joining the Blaugrana in a $93 million (€80 million) transfer on Friday and further competition from Raphinha, there is no space in Hansi Flick’s squad for Fati.
When his departure is confirmed, Barça can free up $7 million (€6 million) a season which is what he was paid at the club according to Mundo Deportivo.
While pursuing Bernardo Silva on a free transfer, which Flick has given his thumbs up to, and Julian Alvarez, every little helps towards staying on the right side of Financial Fair Play (FFP) limits.
Ansu Fati’s permanent transfer to Monaco could be confirmed before the expiry of his loan on June 30, which will also look good on Barça’s records for the financial year ending on that date.