Fermín López is a fan favorite for a reason. When he plays, he makes an impact.
He was very unlucky against Real Sociedad on the weekend to have his opening goal called back. In that game, if there were justice, Fermín would be looking back as the man of the match who stepped up to break the deadlock, and Barcelona would have been on there way to a commanding victory.
But today was another day, and another opportunity to prove yourself. That seems to be the Fermín López mindset. Tomorrow isn’t promised
if you’re a Barcelona player, so you have to make every game count.
Barcelona were between a rock and a hard place against Slavia Prague.
On paper, the mission looked simple in the final two matches of the Champions League league stage. Beat two bottom of the table opponents, hopefully by a healthy margin, and you have a good shot at qualifying in the top eight, and with it, direct qualification for the Round of 16.
Unfortunately, the trip to the Czech Republic wasn’t so straight forward.
Barcelona were being outmuscled and outplayed for much of the first half. Their smaller opponent, again on paper, overwhelmed them with intensity, and attacked the physical mismatch they had on corners.
The Barca way would be to put the ball on the ground, keep possession, and not let Slavia Prague touch the ball. That’s hard to do when Pedri is having an off day, and the cold winter of central Europe hits you in the face. You’re not in the Mediterranean anymore.
But Fermín is a player who can do it anywhere, come rain or shine. He really is a competitive animal, and that’s exactly what Barcelona needed on the day, and if we’re being honest, have needed all season long, and will continue to require going forward.
The Champions League is unforgiving. You can’t show up not ready to play.
Fermín, as always, leads by example.
At the moment, the biggest lesson Barcelona must learn quickly is to put away your chances in front of goal more efficiently. Don’t let teams stick around.
Every time Fermín touches the ball near goal, it looks like a mid range jump shot. There’s a damn good chance it’s going in, and he’s not even a striker by training.
But he can’t do it alone. Going far in the Champions League will be a total team effort.
It’s great to see Dani Olmo, Fermín’s former direct competitor for playing time, and now all of a sudden comrade in arms, joining in on the anything you can do I can do better act.
Barcelona are great at creating chances, but they have to be more lethal.
Hansi Flick knows he has one player he can count on.
The question now is if the rest of the Barcelona players are able to get on Fermín’s level.
If so, they will be one of the team’s to beat in the Champions League. If not, it could be an uphill battle.
