Hansi Flick called up Toni Fernandez, who is just 16, for Tuesday morning’s training session at Barcelona. The youngster scored a wonderstrike this weekend with the academy in a match against Ourense in which he also provided an assist.
In a similar dynamic to that followed by Xavi Hernandez during his previous spell on Barcelona’s coaching staff, Hansi Flick has shown a great deal of affection for the academy in his first few months in charge.
The German coach has been at several youth games to watch, from the stands, the candidates for his call-ups perform in the lower leagues. Toni Fernandez was one of the highlights of the weekend.
On Tuesday morning the manager called him up to train with the first team in a clear show of confidence ahead of the remainder of the campaign.
The first international break is about to come to an end and the Catalans will not be long in integrating into a domestic dynamic that had started with very good news – four victories in four La Liga games.
In attacking space, Hansi Flick has to manage Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Lamine Yamal, Ferran Torres and Ansu Fati, so there is not much room for Toni Fernandez, who, in any case, has plenty to look forward to on the horizon as he takes this stage of his career in his stride.