Spain manager full of praise for Barcelona youngster – ‘Reminds me of Gavi’

Spain announced their final 26-man squad for the UEFA Euro 2024 on Friday and as many as four Barcelona players were included in the list.

While Pau Cubarsi was a surprise exclusion, Ferran Torres, Pedri, Lamine Yamal, and Fermin Lopez made it to Luis de la Fuente’s final squad for the European championships in Germany.

Among the four Barça stars on the list, the selection of Fermin, perhaps, comes as a surprise considering that he had not made a single appearance for Spain until this week when he made his debut against Andorra.

The young midfielder’s performance on debut, coupled with his form towards the end of the season for Barça, were seemingly enough to convince Spain manager Luis de la Fuente.

Fermin will be at the Euros this summer. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Explaining his decision to keep Fermin in the Spain squad for the Euros, the La Roja manager highlighted Fermin’s energy as one of the main reasons, claiming that the youngster reminded him of another Barcelona midfieder, Gavi.

“Fermin is pure energy. There is no need to make comparisons. There are things that reminds me of Gavi,” De la Fuente said, as quoted by SPORT.

“He has a very dynamic talent, he associates well, he has a touch and an energy that is infectious. I didn’t know him and I loved him.”

Fermin enjoyed a fine breakthrough campaign with Barcelona, finishing his debut season with the first team with returns of 11 goals and an assist from 42 games.

Fermin’s growth in the Barcelona senior setup has even led to his market value experiencing a stellar rise, going from €300,000 last year to €30 million – an increase of 100 times.