Five FC Barcelona preseason takeaways

5. La Masia is alive and well

Barcelona’s legendary academy has gone through dry spells at times, but it’s never gone away. It’s now given the first team a couple more very promising talents: Fermín López and Lamine Yamal.

Fermín has returned from loan and quickly banged out a wonder goal and 2 assists in not very much playing time. He’s looked completely at home out there, playing well off Pedri especially, and he’s placed himself firmly into the first team dynamics this season.

But the main attraction so far has definitely been Lamine Yamal. The 16 (!!) year old has shown real flashes of quality and explosiveness, making fools of players twice his age. He’s quick and elusive, and can find a final pass – qualities that many great wingers have.

Yamal has a certain something; an ability to pull of difficult moves easily and make it look really simple. His confidence has got to be sky-high right now. It’s not entirely clear right now how much he’ll participate with the first team, but he’s certainly shown he’s capable. If all goes well, he’s going to be an exciting player for Barcelona for many, many years to come.

What do you think? Any takeaways we’ve missed, or any you feel are more important? Let us know in the comments below.