Barcelona homegrown star set to see increased prominence with national team | OneFootball

After a long saga in the summer where he was close to leaving Barcelona, Fermin Lopez has stood out as one of the team’s best and most valued players this season.

While an injury did sideline him for a few weeks, he has stepped up his game and delivered in front of goal more often than not, and his directness has been a serious asset for the team.

So far, he has already scored six goals and provided four assists and is Hansi Flick’s number one choice for the attacking midfield, even ahead of Dani Olmo.

Prominence for La Roja

As relayed in a recent report by SPORT, Fermin’s role with the Spanish national team is now set to change for the better as Luis de la Fuente has been maintaining a close eye on his development and quality.

So far, the youngster has only played three games for Spain and has come on as a substitute in all three – totalling 79 minutes played across all three outings.

That situation is set to change from the ongoing international break in Spain’s games against Georgia and Turkey.

Bigger role for Fermin with Spain. (Photo by David Ramos/Getty Images)

The La Masia star has been called up by La Roja and is a frontrunner to be the team’s primary attacking midfielder this time around, especially with Pedri injured and Olmo still unconvincing.

Fermin may not be a de facto starter yet, but he will undoubtedly see more prominence than he has in the past for La Roja. The manager values his quality and progress, and the opportunities will keep arriving if he keeps up the same level.

De la Fuente reportedly loves the midfielder’s ability to score goals and even sees him as an outright striker given Spain’s relative lack of resources in the department. He knows that Fermin is at his best and wants to utilise that to the maximum.

All eyes, needless to say, will thus be on how many minutes the youngster sees for Spain over the coming week. With the FIFA World Cup on the horizon, his rise could not have arrived at a better time.