Not only did Szczęsny debut with FC Barcelona in Barbastro, but so did the youth player Toni Fernández. He achieved this by making history, becoming the second youngest player to officially debut with the Catalan team. At 16 years and 173 days old, he has only been surpassed by a prodigy like Lamine Yamal, who played his first match at 15 years and 291 days.
Before managing to debut in Barbastro, Toni Fernández had been drafted for several La Liga and Champions League matches, but hadn't played. Hansi Flick loves him and has been following him since his arrival at Barça, when he already rewarded him by taking him on the tour to the United States and giving him minutes. The next step was to make him debut in an official match, leaving a good impression.
In this Copa del Rey match, Toni Fernández was close to debuting with an assist, providing a great ball to Ansu Fati to score. Although he couldn't add to any individual statistics, he is leaving his mark in the 'B' team... despite being so young. At 16 years old, he has 2 goals and 1 assist in 5 matches, being one of the standout players in the reserve team.
The next step for Toni Fernández could be his call-up for the Spanish Super Cup to be played in Saudi Arabia. With neither Dani Olmo nor Pau Víctor registered, it's most likely that Hansi Flick will choose to take the youth player.
This is Toni Fernández: the Youth Player Only Surpassed by Lamine Yamal
In just nine minutes on the field, Toni Fernández stood out for his excellent vision of the game. He attempted six and succeeded in all, without even getting nervous. After the match, captain Ronald Araújo wanted to highlight him: "He's unbelievable, he has tremendous quality. He's not afraid, you go hard on him in training, and he keeps facing you. It's tremendous".
Hansi Flick hasn't had any problem trusting La Masia during his first months at Barça. Toni Fernández is the sixth young player he has debuted with the first team, following Andrés Cuenca, Sergi Domínguez, Bernal, Gerard Martín, and Pau Víctor.
Toni Fernández's rise in Barça's youth academy has been prodigious, just like his cousin Guille's. Both keep growing and already dream of a future sharing the locker room in the first team. For now, the first opportunity has been for him, but it's expected that his relative will debut soon.