While Lamine Yamal has been taking most of the spotlight, Fermin Lopez has also been making great progress at FC Barcelona during the last few months. Ever since his inclusion in the team that Xavi selected for the USA pre-season tour, Lopez has not looked back and has been reaching personal and career milestones at a rapid pace.
This week, he was called up for the Spain U-21 side for the first time in his career and can make an appearance in the match against Uzbekistan in the upcoming UEFA Euro qualifier. As SPORT has reported, Lopez recently spoke to the media in which he recalled his growth and development at Barcelona in the last few years.
Jump to the first team, Real Madrid interest
Talking about his start to the current season, Lopez confessed that he was not expecting such a rapid rise but was putting in the work to get to the first team nonetheless:
“I didn’t expect to make the jump to the first team from what I was experiencing years ago, but I’ve always had hard work and effort since I was a child, and the reward has arrived.”
While he is shining for Barcelona now, Lopez could also have been a Real Madrid player as the Capital side was also interested in him. However, Lopez shared that he had no doubts when Barcelona appeared interested in him:
“Real Madrid asked about me once, but I’ve always been a Barcelona supporter. My father never used to tell me if there were teams interested in me; they kept me out of it. But one day, he asked me what I would do if Barcelona came, and I told him I would go without hesitation.”
Early career struggles, Gavi
However, life has not always been easy at Barcelona, and Lopez also shared the difficult moments he endured in this interview:
“I came alone, without my family, and lived in La Masia. At first, it’s tough, especially at night. You think about your parents and friends, but at La Masia, they treat you very well, and all your teammates are in the same situation. We help each other. I didn’t reach the point of not being able to stand it anymore. I missed my family, but I was living my dream. I wouldn’t trade this for going back home.”
One of the players who accompanied Lopez in the early phases of his career was Gavi. Lopez recalled his time spent with Gavi and cleared the air on how he differs in real life from how he is on the pitch:
“We’ve lived together at La Masia, and we’re always together, except when I’m at university. On the field, he transforms. He’s very impulsive and has a competitive spirit, but he’s a regular guy, very friendly.
He’s not a troublemaker. He gives his all in games and in training. He doesn’t understand anything other than giving his best. Sometimes it’s true that he tells me, ‘Fer, I can’t believe I stuck my head in there.’ That’s just how he is, and that’s why he’s achieved what he has.”
While he was the closest to Gavi, Lopez shared that the entire first team welcomed him in the dressing room: “I’m already one of them because that’s how my teammates make me feel.”
Lastly, Lopez also shared how his social media went through a storm when he scored the goal against Real Madrid in Dallas: “The match against Madrid blew up my Instagram.”
