Barcelona midfielder Fermin Lopez has expressed a desire to spend his whole career at Camp Nou.
The 20-year-old made the move to the Catalan outfit from Real Betis in 2016, progressing through the youth system at the club before debuting for the first team in August.
Lopez enjoyed an impressive 2022-23 campaign on loan at Linares Deportivo in the third tier of Spanish football, scoring 12 goals and registering four assists in 40 appearances for the club, before returning to Camp Nou to battle for a first-team spot.
The midfielder's impressive pre-season form saw him brought into the senior side on a permanent basis, with the club believed to have rejected more loan interest over the summer.
Lopez has scored once in six appearances for Barcelona this season, and the youngster has opened up on his progression into the senior side.
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"Well. I remember it was my father, one time in the car. He told me: 'Hey Fer, and if Barca or Madrid come, what do we do?'" Lopez told Sport in a wide-ranging interview.
"At that time there was already interest in me and of course, they asked me my opinion, if I wanted to leave. Until one day he told me that Barca wanted me and what should we do. I said, 'dad, dad, we're leaving, we're leaving.' I didn't think about it.
"Yes, it is true that later, when time went by and the time to leave approached, I had a hard time because I was very little and I didn't want to be separated from my parents, and my friends. But what I have experienced here, entering La Masia, even if it was very small, I wouldn't change it for anything.
Lopez also opened up on his loan move to Linares, admitting that it was "a very difficult decision".
"It was a very difficult decision because I always wanted to be here and see that you have to leave, even if it was on loan," he said.
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"But well, they told me that I was not going to have many minutes in the reserve team and that the best thing would be for me to go on loan and look for the best solution, which was Linares. And the truth is that I did very well there.
"I remember that I arrived here in the summer, the pre-season was coming and the coordinators met with me. They told me that I was going to be with Xavi for the first week and that they would decide if he went on the tour or returned to Barca Atletic.
"And in training, it is true that I was feeling good. I was trying to do my best, Xavi noticed me and wanted to take me on the tour. I want to stay at Barca forever.
"I would like to be in the first team, to continue here. I hope I can always be here, but hey, you never know. It is the best club in the world and every year the best come. You never know."
Lopez has scored once in four La Liga appearances this season, while he has also featured twice in the Champions League.
Matt Law
