Raphinha concern opens door for Barcelona to try homegrown star up front | OneFootball

Barcelona may already have their most natural solution to Raphinha’s potential absence against Getafe.

With the Brazilian likely to be rested after returning from international duty with a thigh problem, Hansi Flick indeed has several attacking options to replace Raphinha. 

Yet Fermin Lopez deserves particular attention after showing with Spain that he can operate effectively as a centre-forward.

The 23-year-old has never been a conventional number nine, as his game is built around movement, pressing and arriving from deeper areas.

However, he also has one quality that makes him different from most midfielders: a genuine instinct for goal.

Spain may have given Flick another idea

Fermin’s performance against Croatia offered a useful demonstration of what he can bring higher up the pitch.

He produced four shots in quick succession, including one that struck the post, while also making the important run that helped create Spain’s opening goal.

His movement is particularly useful in a central role, as Fermin can combine with teammates, press defenders, win the ball back and attack the box without losing sight of the goal.

That makes him a different proposition from simply moving another winger into the centre.

Flick had already been given reason to consider the midfielder as a contingency option, and seeing him operate there for Spain could strengthen that idea now that Raphinha’s availability is uncertain.

Fermin’s numbers make the experiment hard to ignore

Since breaking into Barcelona’s first team four seasons ago, Fermin has recorded 36 goals and 30 assists in 143 appearances and 7,459 minutes.

That works out to a goal or assist every 124 minutes.

Fermin Lopez’s performance against Croatia was worth watching. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

For comparison, Dani Olmo is at 127 minutes, Lamine Yamal at 103 and Raphinha at 82. Those figures explain why Fermin can be considered more than a temporary emergency option in the final third.

Notably, his role with Spain is a different matter. Despite being a regular starter for Barcelona, Fermin does not have an established place in Luis de la Fuente’s strongest XI. 

Against Croatia, he did not expect to start, while Olmo has retained his position despite being a substitute more often at club level.

The situation at Barcelona, though, is different, as Flick already appears to have moved away from relying exclusively on a traditional centre-forward. 

So if Raphinha is unavailable, Fermin gives him an option who can occupy the central position without changing the intensity, movement and pressing that have become central to Barça’s attacking game.

The Getafe match could therefore offer another opportunity to test whether Fermin is more than a midfielder who can fill in up front.