Premier League club Brighton have announced the signing of highly-rated Barcelona youngster Ansu Fati.
The Seagulls confirmed the signing of the prolific attacking midfielder in a club statement on the club’s website.
Ansu Fati is joining Brighton on a loan deal till 2024 with no buy option.
Regarded as one of the most prominent young talents, Ansu Fati joins Brighton with a brilliant career trail with Barcelona filled with trophies despite his recent travails. He has won Laliga, Spanish Super Cup, Copa Del Rey, with Barcelona, and UEFA Nations League with Spain.
Fati has also lit his career with series of individual awards and records. He is Barcelona’s youngest player to play in Champions League and the youngest goalscorer in the tournament. He has also clinched Laliga player of the month.
Fati’s move to Brighton is another big gain for the Seagulls, who have lost Marc Allister to Liverpool and Moises Caicedo to Chelsea.
Fati opted for Barcelona exit after he lost his starting berth under Xavi Hernandez.
This season, he has started all his three matches for Barcelona from the bench. After initial resolve to fight for his career at Camp Nou, Fati settled for the temporary loan exit to Brighton for regular time.
He was linked to top clubs in Europe with Tottenham and Liverpool also in the race before Brighton beat the competition to win the race.
Ansu Fati is Brighton’s highest-paid player
Following his move to Brighton, Ansu Fati will now be Brighton’s highest-paid player throughout this season. As part of the loan agreement, Brighton agreed to cover 80% of Ansu Fati’s Barcelona wages.
At Barcelona, Fati was fourth on the ladder of highest-paid players behind IIkay Gundogan, who is third in the log with €360,577 weekly wage, followed by Robert Lewandowski on second position with a weekly wage of €400,577.
Frenkie de Jong topped the ladder as Barcelona’s highest-paid player with a weekly wage of €721,154.
Ansu Fati is the highest-paid young player at Barcelona but he is fourth on the ladder with a weekly wage of €268,269.
With Brighton set to foot 80% of Ansu Fati’s wages, the Seagulls will now have to fork out €214,615 every week for Ansu Fati, two times more than Brighton’s top-earner, Adam Lallana, who earns €105,310 weekly.
Why Ansu Fati turned down Liverpool, Tottenham for Brighton
Among several clubs who pushed for a move for Fati, Brighton was ruled out by pundits for a chance to sign Ansu Fati. The Seagulls emerged as a top contender for the signatory of Fati due to the choice of the player.
Ansu Fati reportedly agreed to the move for Brighton to avoid lack of game time. The La Masia graduate, reportedly wanted a club he will be a regular in the lineup, playing a prominent role.
Ansu Fati’s Brighton chances
Fati plays as an attacking midfielder. The Spaniard will easily fit into Brighton’s possessive style of play.
Brighton manager, Roberto De Zerbi is a big fan and admirer of the possessive and attacking style of football. De Zerbi has been heavily influenced by Manchester City manager, Pep Guardiola.
Under Roberto De Zerbi, Brighton adopt a similar style of play as Manchester City, Arsenal, and Barcelona – teams heavily influenced by tiki-taka football.
