Roberto De Zerbi demands more from Barcelona loanee Ansu Fati: “What he’s doing is not enough”
Ansu Fati’s season at Brighton on loan from Barcelona has not gone to plan. The young forward went to the Premier League in search of more playing time after not featuring enough under Xavi Hernández last season, but a serious muscle injury just a couple of months into his time in England derailed Fati’s campain and he hasn’t been able to play well since.
Fati has started just twice in 2024, and wasn’t used at all in Sunday’s Premier League defeat to Liverpool despite a number of injuries in attack for Brighton. His coach Roberto De Zerbi was asked about Ansu in a press conference on Tuesday, and did not hesitate to demand more from the youngster.
“He has to give us something more, because what he’s doing is not enough. The expectations are always very high with him. The start of his career has been difficult to accept and understand, but for great players the most important thing is to adapt to the expectations placed on you.
“We are helping him. He’s a sensitive kid, a good kid, and when you work with people like him you are happy if you can help him.”
Source: Mundo Deportivo
It doesn’t look as though De Zerbi has lost patience with Fati and continues to try and help the youngster, which is good from Barça’s perspective since they carefully chose Brighton as Ansu’s destination for his loan period to learn from one of the most promising coaches in Europe.
But the truth is Fati hasn’t helped himself, and his performances haven’t been good enough. It doesn’t look like a return to Barcelona this summer is on the cards, and Ansu might have a very tricky path forward as he tries to rediscover the form that made him one the most promising prospects in recent memory when he first broke into Barça’s first team four years ago.
