July 5, 2019 - The Presentation
The Camp Nou was packed. Ninety-nine thousand fans had come to witness the unveiling of their new star.
Ethan Loki. €160 million. Five-year contract. Number 9 jersey.
He walked onto the pitch in the Barcelona kit—the famous blaugrana stripes. The crowd erupted. Banners everywhere: "Welcome Loki!" "The Prince Becomes a King!"
President Bartomeu handed him the jersey. "Welcome to FC Barcelona, Ethan. We believe you're the future of this club."
Ethan addressed the crowd in Spanish—he'd been learning for months.
"*Gracias, culés. I'm incredibly proud to join this amazing club. I promise to give everything for these colors. Visca el Barça!"
The stadium roared.
Pre-Season - The Weight of Expectations
Training at Barcelona was different from Monaco.
The intensity was higher. The scrutiny was constant. The pressure was suffocating.
At Monaco, he'd been the homegrown prince. The academy product who delivered glory.
At Barcelona, he was the €160 million replacement for Luis Suárez. The player expected to partner with Messi and deliver immediate success.
The comparisons were relentless:
"Can he live up to the price tag?" "Will he fit with Messi?" "Is he worth more than Mbappé?"
His teammates welcomed him warmly. Messi invited him to dinner. Busquets gave him advice. Piqué joked about facing him in the Champions League final.
But there was an undercurrent of pressure. Barcelona hadn't won the Champions League since 2015. They'd been embarrassed by Roma and Liverpool in consecutive seasons. They needed a savior.
And they were betting €160 million on a twenty-year-old.
August 16, 2019 - La Liga DebutBarcelona vs Athletic Bilbao
Camp Nou. Ninety thousand fans. Ethan's first competitive match for Barcelona.
He started on the left wing—Messi on the right, Griezmann (who'd joined that summer too) through the middle.
Nerves. Pressure. Expectation.
In the eighteenth minute, Ethan proved why Barcelona paid €160 million.
Receiving the ball on the left, he cut inside, beat two defenders with a double elastico, and curled a shot into the far corner.
1-0.
Camp Nou exploded. His first goal for Barcelona. On his debut.
In the sixty-third minute, he assisted Griezmann with a perfect through ball.
In the seventy-eighth minute, Messi scored after a brilliant combination with Ethan.
Final score: 3-0.
Perfect debut. Goal and assist. Barcelona top of La Liga.
August-December 2019 - Finding His Rhythm
The first few months at Barcelona were an adjustment.
La Liga was different from Ligue 1. Defenses were more organized. Teams parked the bus against Barcelona. Space was scarce.
But Ethan adapted. He studied Messi's movement. Learned from Busquets' positioning. Trained extra hours with Griezmann to develop chemistry.
By December, his statistics were impressive:
La Liga: 14 goals, 8 assists in 17 matches Champions League: 6 goals in 6 group stage matches Copa del Rey: 3 goals in 2 matches
Barcelona sat top of La Liga, three points clear of Real Madrid. They'd topped their Champions League group. The team was clicking.
And Ethan was a key reason why.
January 2020 - The Messi Partnership
The relationship with Messi was special.
The Argentine superstar had seen countless talented players come and go. But he recognized something different in Ethan.
"You see the game like I do," Messi said after one training session. "Three moves ahead. Not many players think that way."
They developed an almost telepathic understanding. Messi would drop deep, Ethan would make the run. Ethan would pull defenders wide, Messi would cut inside. They created space for each other naturally.
In January alone, they combined for eight goals—four each—with assists going both ways.
The media dubbed them "Magic and Vision"—Messi's magic, Ethan's vision.
Barcelona were playing the most beautiful football in Europe.
End of Chapter 26