PROFILE | Ansu Fati and a faltering revival arc | OneFootball

Ansu Fati’s career had veered off course. Injuries and a subsequent lack of rhythm meant that he failed to live up to the billing of being Lionel Messi’s successor at Barcelona; the frequent comparisons and the pressure of living up to La Pulga probably didn’t happen either. 

A loan move to Brighton and Hove Albion failed to correct his course and so he joined Monaco in the summer. Famous for forging careers, they now had to rebuild one. As it was with fellow recruit Paul Pogba, caution was the order of the day. The club noted how injuries at the start of campaigns have impacted Fati in recent seasons, and so he was not rushed. The Spaniard did not feature until September, but he was worth the wait.

He netted on debut in the Champions League, coming off the bench to score a consolation in a 4-1 loss to Club Brugge. Just days later, he then made his Ligue 1 debut. Once again, Fati came off the bench as he netted a crucial brace in a 5-2 win over Metz. It was the start of an excellent run, as the Spaniard would then net in the following week (in a loss to Lorient), before another brace, this time in a 2-2 draw against local rivals OGC Nice; both goals came from the penalty spot.

Fati doesn’t feature in December

The Barcelona loanee looked sharp, not only scoring goals but showing glimpses of that technical quality that earned those Messi comparisons in the first place. That was under Adi Hutter; his impact has lessened under the Austrian’s successor, Sébastien Pocognoli. 

Fati did not make the best first impression, failing to shake Pocognoli’s hand when he was subbed off during the Belgian’s first game in charge (a 1-1 draw against SCO Angers). Pocognoli quickly quashed the “affair”. He added, “It was unfortunate but no more than that”. 

But he has been less prominent in recent weeks, not because of that episode in Angers; Pocognoli has also denied that there was any question of “insufficiency” in the Spaniard’s performances, although he has failed to replicate his electric start. It has been health and fitness – that old chestnut – that has held him back once again. Firstly, it was a minor illness that depleted him and then at the start of December, another muscular injury. Fati’s attempts at renewal at Monaco are yielding mixed results, but the Principality club will be buoyed by glimpses; they’ll just want to see them more often and over a prolonged period.

GFFN | Luke Entwistle