The Celta-Barça match was about to begin. Dani Olmo, dressed in the regulation tracksuit, had just sat down on the bench at Balaídos. He was supposed to be a substitute. Suddenly, Hansi Flick approached him. "Casadón's injured, you're playing." Such is football; Olmo not only unexpectedly entered the pitch, but he also played the full 90 minutes and delivered one of his best performances in a Barça shirt. He wasn't the only one. In fact, Barça rediscovered their best form in Vigo Despite the balancing act the coach had to perform due to absences.

Before summer ends on September 22nd—the start of the autumn equinox—Fermín López wants to continue making headlines. If during the final stretch of the transfer window he was the focus of news due to Chelsea's interest in signing him, with Barça rubbing their hands at the prospect of a lucrative transfer and him ignoring the daisy, against Valencia it was because of his football. Fermín remained silent until the transfer window closed and decided to continue wearing the Blaugrana, which had always been his main desire despite letting the Londoners woo him. Against Valencia, he spoke where he usually does best: on the pitch. And, specifically, at Johan Cruyff's, where he already demonstrated during the Gamper why Hansi Flick was not keen to let him go. Against Valencia, he opened the scoring with a brace in a 6-0 rout that energized the 5,862 fans who didn't completely fill the small (and temporary) Barcelona stadium.

The week in which Hansi Flick's Barça scared Europe, thrashing Real Madrid at the Bernabéu and Bayern Munich at Montjuïc, they did so with Marc Casadó as the driving force behind the team. The midfielder from Sant Pere de Vilamajor, playing with his heart on his sleeve, quickly became an icon of Barcelona. But the reality is that, just a few months earlier, when he was in tears after losing to Barça Atlètic in the final of the play-off After promotion to the Second Division, his future as a Barça player was far from clear. Flick, who had been studied on video, gave him a chance in preseason and saved him from an exit.

La Masia has always been a precious treasure for Barça. An identity based on investing in players trained in the youth academy that has taken Pep Guardiola, Lionel Messi, Xavi Hernández, Lamine Yamal and Pau Cubarsí to the elite.However, it also served as a way to raise money for players who don't have a place in the first team. Famous names like Àlex Valle, Nico González, and Ilaix Moriba have had to seek a place elsewhere in exchange for a transfer. This formula has generated close to €200 million over the last 10 years. Both Josep Maria Bartomeu (2015-2020) and Joan Laporta (2021-2025) have used La Masia to make ends meet. Now, a potential transfer for Marc Casadó, a situation the Vallecas native would like to avoid, would allow Laporta to surpass the €100 million mark in sales of youth-trained players during the current term.

Football is fascinating. Millions of people ask footballers not to prioritize their professional careers. We hope they don't break our hearts. He dreamed of playing for Villarreal or Leganés when he was a kid in Salvador de Bahia. Or that he already had Glasgow Rangers jerseys in his bedroom in a village in Galicia. They're leaving plenty of clues that show they really do care about your club. Can we have any doubts about Marc Casadó, who even goes to Canaletes? Can we have any doubts about Joan Garcia, now that Barça wants him?

"At that time I didn't know where to find most of the countries we went to. These are experiences I will never have. They are unrepeatable. At 15 I had already travelled more than my entire family," admits Eric Vega (Masquefa, 2003). With Barça they travelled all over the world – to Colombia, the United States, Japan and all over Europe – but there is one trip that has remained etched in their memory above all the rest: in Senegal, in the winter of 2017, alongside Alejandro Balde, Marc Casadó, Fermín López and Xavi Simons, another of the talents of La Mas. They were the U19 A team. "It's an unforgettable trip," he adds. He remembers looking up where Senegal was on a map at home, with his parents. "I knew it was an African country, but I had no idea where it was." Vega has just signed for Sabadell B, in the Third Federation, after months without being able to enjoy football due to two injuries to his left knee.

In the Champions League round of 16, in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and top of La Liga. The 1-0 win over Rayo Vallecano with a penalty goal from Robert Lewandowski puts Barça at the top of the table. Here are some quick notes.

In the last 16 of the Champions League, in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey and leaders of La Liga. The victory (1-0) against Rayo Vallecano Robert Lewandowski's penalty puts Barça at the top of the table. Here are some quick notes.