Barcelona starlet Fermin Lopez impressed fans during their preseason tour to the USA, scoring in El Clasico against Real Madrid, and eventually earning a spot on the fringes of the first team. However he has suffered his first setback this season.
Lopez, 20, made his debut for the first team against Villarreal in August, and signed a new contract until 2027 shortly afterwards. Initially he was due to be loaned out after a successful spell with Linares last season, but managed to convince Xavi Hernandez he could be useful.
In particular, Lopez has stood out for his competitive edge, but it got him into trouble over the weekend. Lopez requested that he be allowed to drop down to the Barcelona Atletic side for their match against Nastic de Tarragona during the international break, in order to help out and keep up his game time.
🎥 𝐇𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐋𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓𝐒 | Nàstic de Tarragona 🆚 𝗕𝗮𝗿𝗰̧𝗮 𝗔𝘁𝗹𝗲̀𝘁𝗶𝗰 (1-0)
⚽ El resum de la derrota per la mínima a Tarragona amb un gol en temps afegit#ForçaBarça 💙❤ pic.twitter.com/WTSQfgta10
— Barça Atlètic (@FCBarcelonaB) September 11, 2023
He would be sent off for two bookings in the 47th minute, with Nastic grabbing a 91st minute winner through Ander Gorosidi to take all three points too. Teammate Marc Casado revealed after the match that he was in tears, and Lopez later apologised to his colleagues for his indiscretion.
“Hurt by the defeat of the team, that gave everything until the end. I wanted to apologise to my team for not being able to continue helping on the pitch. Time to learn from this and keep moving forward,” he said, as referenced by MD.
🚨 Fermín López ended up crying in the dressing room after being expelled against Nàstic de Tarragona. @ferrancorreas
— barcacentre (@barcacentre) September 11, 2023
Lopez will still be available for Barcelona’s next match, as Atletic face Fuenlabrada on Saturday at 16:30, hours before the senior side kick off against Real Betis, meaning he can serve his suspension then. Xavi will not be unduly worried by this in all likelihood, and if anything, it will serve to teach him the lesson with Barca Atletic rather than the first team.
