Barcelona winger Ansu Fati suffers fresh injury blow in Brighton's win at Nottingham Forest
The on-loan forward limped off in the first half of the Seagulls' 3-2 victory at the City Ground on Saturday and faces another spell out
Barcelona's on-loan attacker Ansu Fati has suffered yet another injury setback after limping off in Brighton's 3-2 win at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.
Fati, who joined the Seagulls in a season-long deal in the summer, was handed his seventh start for the south-coast club by manager Roberto De Zerbi for the trip to the City Ground.
But the Spain forward lasted just 21 minutes after picking up an injury and had to be replaced by Jack Hinshelwood.
The 21-year-old stretched for a ball on the break and looked in immediate discomfort as he went down holding his calf.
Since he burst onto the scene as a talented 16-year-old in 2019, Fati's short career has been blighted by a series of injuries.
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The youngster has already had surgery for a serious knee problem and has since suffered a number of muscle injuries.
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After a loss of confidence and a lack of game time at Barcelona, Fati moved to Brighton in the summer to rebuild, but now looks set for another spell on the sidelines.
Without Fati, Brighton came from a goal down to beat Forest 3-1, with substitute Joao Pedro on target twice for the Seagulls.
Defender Lewis Dunk was sent off with 17 minutes left and Morgan Gibbs-White pulled a goal back from the penalty spot shortly afterwards, but De Zerbi's side hung on for a 3-2 win.
Brighton are up to seventh, just a point behind Newcastle, while Forest are down in 14th but eight clear of the relegation zone after 13 rounds of the Premier League.
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Ben Hayward is a European football writer and Tottenham Hotspur fan with over 15 years’ experience, he has covered games all over the world - including three World Cups, several Champions League finals, Euros, Copa America - and has spent much of that time in Spain. Ben speaks English and Spanish, currently dividing his time between Barcelona and London, covering all the big talking points of the weekend on FFT: he’s also written several list features and interviewed Guglielmo Vicario for the magazine.