11 Contributions in 12 Games! Chelsea’s €40 Million Offer Was Too Low – Otherwise Fermín Could Have Joined
Barcelona will face Chelsea in the Champions League at Stamford Bridge.
Fermín has once again emerged as one of the brightest stars in Barcelona’s squad this season. This is not solely based on his playing time – in fact, 10 players in the team have accumulated more minutes than him. What makes him stand out is his significant impact on the outcome and direction of matches. His importance was once again strongly demonstrated in the game against Athletic Club Bilbao: Fermín only played 66 minutes but scored a goal and forced the opponent’s player Sancet to be sent off with a red card.
Notably, this match marked Fermín’s 100th official appearance for Barcelona’s first team. Achieving this important milestone at the age of 22 fully reflects his firm determination to leave a deep impression on the pitch since joining the club. Every Barcelona fan vividly remembers his debut in the 2023 summer US El Clásico, where he scored a brilliant goal and provided an assist in just 24 minutes to help the team defeat Real Madrid 3-0.
Although Fermín is not a forward, he has scored 26 goals and provided 14 assists to date. He always steps up at crucial moments of the game, which was fully demonstrated when he represented Spain at the 2024 Paris Olympics. At that tournament, he won the gold medal with the team and was named the tournament’s MVP. It is therefore not surprising that Chelsea was considering signing Fermín until the final day of the transfer window last summer.
In fact, Chelsea did show strong interest in Fermín, but they clearly underestimated his true value, offering a relatively low €40 million. It is worth noting that they demanded much higher prices for players whose influence is far less than Fermín’s. Particularly, this Tuesday, Fermín will represent Barcelona in the Champions League match at Stamford Bridge.
According to Camel Live’s data, in the game against Athletic Club Bilbao, Fermín touched the ball 55 times, ranking only 7th in the Barcelona squad. However, his importance is undeniable: he scored 1 goal, with both of his shots hitting the target, completed 34 out of 37 passes (a 75% success rate in 12 passes in the final third), led the team in tackles with 7, and ranked second in dribbles with 5 – only behind top dribbler Yamal (8 dribbles).
Despite ranking 11th in playing time this season (818 minutes accumulated), he has directly contributed to 11 goals (7 goals and 4 assists) in 12 official games played so far, including playing the full 90 minutes in 5 matches.
