Two incidents raised tension between Barcelona stars Gavi and Fermin Lopez | OneFootball

Barcelona stars Fermin Lopez and Gavi have been the topic of plenty of discussion this summer, with the La Masia stars supposedly falling out over the summer. Fermin has come out publicly to deny any issues, but reports over tension between the two continue.

During the summer, it became a talking point in the Catalan capital that Lopez and Gavi had fallen out. Some of the speculation, fuelled by a post from Lopez on Instagram, spoke of a potential issue between their partners that impacted the two of them.

Training ground incidents impacted Gavi-Fermin relationship

According to Diario AS, the first incident that caused tension between the two occurred during preseason training while the side was in South Korea. Gavi went into a challenge in a particularly strong manner, and Lopez was on the end of it. The 22-year-old needed to be helped back to his feet. A second incident then occurred a few days later, back in Barcelona, in the same fashion. This time Fermin was straight back to his feet, and the two exchanged strong words, with their teammates separating them.

Image via Alex Caparros / Getty Images

At this point, the coaching staff became concerned, and manager Hansi Flick has spoken to both separately to try and resolve the matter, advising them to manage their emotions better. Flick’s comments about egos, and the arrival of Thiago Alcantara are thought to be in part influenced by the tension between the two. RAC1 agree with AS that the matter has been resolved, but do note that their relationship is not the same as it was before. The pair came through the academy together and have been close since.

Fermin Lopez addressed speculation directly

After Lopez decided not to pursue a move to Chelsea this summer though, he addressed the issue directly a couple of weeks ago.

“Gavi has been my friend since I was 12 years old. I’ve known him since my time at Betis, but since I joined La Masia he’s been my friend, like my brother. We have shared a lot. People always speculate, this is not going to change, but he is still my friend. We have a good relationship, as always and I have nothing more to say about it.”