American sportswear giant Nike has asked Ansu Fati to give up the #10 shirt if Lionel Messi returns to Barcelona from Paris Saint-Germain this summer. The sportswear brand wants to boost shirt sales and believe Messi wearing the coveted #10 will help. So far, Ansu Fati has failed to carry the weight of the number on his back and has fallen short of expectations.
He has already starred in multiple Nike commercials and wears their Zoom Mercurial Vapour 15 cleats. Ansu Fati was given the coveted shirt after Lionel Messi left Barcelona for PSG at the end of his contract in 2021. The teenager had shown promise as a goal scorer and took over from Messi in October 2021 after signing a contract deal through 2027.
Barca stepping up efforts to bring back Lionel Messi by working on FFP regulations
Nike’s request comes after Lionel Messi’s return to Barcelona is starting to look more viable. And the American giants want to churn out as much financial advantage as they can through their shirt sales of the Argentine. As a result, they need Fati to give up the famous number-10 shirt, and make it available for Messi should he re-sign with the Catalans in the summer.
Ansu Fati broke into the Barcelona first squad in 2019 as a La Masia prodigy, smashing a range of club and tournament records for youngest goalscorer and appearance maker. The Guinea-born superstar had a strong partnership with Lionel Messi, but their relationship soured when Fati opted to fire his brother Rodrigo as his agent and instead go to super agency Jorge Mendes.
When Messi moved to PSG as a free agent in 2021, Fati was given a lucrative new contract that included a €1 billion ($1.01 billion) release clause and the Argentine’s legendary number ’10’ shirt. Due to a number of injuries and reduced playing time under Xavi Hernandez, Fati has not evolved into the next generation superstar as expected, and the reports claim that Nike is now applying pressure for the number ’10’ to change hands “in order to generate more income and profit.”
Barcelona are pushing up their efforts to make a contract offer to Lionel Messi this summer by discussing with La Liga how to generate additional flexibility in their Financial Fair Play ratio. The club is in talks with the league over spending limitations for next season, with the goal of bringing Messi back to the Nou Camp for what is likely to be his final season in Europe.
However, Barcelona have been penalised by La Liga for exceeding their limit with three players during the 2021-22 season, including ex-Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen, and has been obliged to re-register Gavi as an academy player. The Christensen fine was successfully appealed, but Barcelona is still at the limit of their spending power and will almost definitely have to sell players to facilitate a Messi return.
According to El Nacional, Barcelona president Joan Laporta and the board of directors are willing to let Ansu Fati go in the summer. Given Nike’s clout at the club and their long-standing partnership, the brand believes Lionel Messi is the ideal choice to return and reclaim what is rightfully his. Nonetheless, the club is working with that goal in mind, and they have been encouraged by the recent lack of progress in Messi’s contract negotiations with Paris Saint-Germain.