The teenager's two strikes in the first period have
etched him into the record books once again Barcelona starlet Ansu Fati has become the youngest player to score a brace in La Liga with his two goals in the first half of the 2-0 victory against Levante on Sunday. Fati, aged 17 years and 94 days, struck in the 30th
and 31st minutes at Camp Nou to surpass the
record set by Real Zaragoza's Juanmi Jimenez in
2010, who was 17 years and 115 days at the time. The Guinea-Bissau-born attacker started the match
in a three-man attack with Lionel Messi and Antoine
Griezmann but proved to be the most lethal of the
trio in front of goal across the opening 45 minutes. MORE TEAMS With 30 minutes on the clock, Messi played a
wonderful, defence-splitting through ball to set Fati
through on goal, and the teenager took one touch
to shrug off the defender before slotting home the
opener. Seconds after the restart, Fati again received the
pass from Messi, before drilling a low shot into the
net at the near post to become the league's
youngest ever brace scorer. Fati was delighted to again be on the Barca
scoresheet once again but didn't want too much
emphasis on the record he broke "It's a dream. I always dreamed about this and it
has been fulfilled," Fati told reporters post-match.
"Thank you all for this opportunity. "They just told me [about the record], but hey, I
have nothing to say, to keep improving and take
every opportunity. "My teammates make everything easier from day
one and I'm grateful to each one. It's not easy for
them to behave so well and I'm very grateful." Fati made his debut for the Blaugrana this season
as a 16-year-old and became the club's youngest ever goalscorer - and the third youngest in La Liga - with his strike in the 2-2 draw against Osasuna in
August. The Spanish under 21 international also became
the youngest ever goalscorer in the Champions League with the winner against Inter at the San Siro in December. Fati has made 19 appearances for Barca so far this
season, scoring five goals and getting one assist. Barca's manager Quique Setien might have to play
Fati more in the second half of the season because
of the long-term injury to Luis Suarez. The Spanish tactician hinted the teenager could get
exposed to more game time after the Catalan's Copa del Rey win against Ibiza. "The first thing we are doing is seeing the players in
different positions," Setien said. "[Fati] has a lot of talent. We will see how he
progresses. He will get more starting time as long as
he keeps developing." Barcelona's victory against their Catalan opponent
takes them within three points of La Liga leaders Real Madrid.

Records