'Unbeatable' debut for Dani Olmo

Dreams do come true. Take Dani Olmo. Born in Terrassa, just outside Barcelona, he was part of the Barça youth setup until he left for Zagreb at the age of 26. Via Leipzig, he returned to his boyhood club a decade later and at Vallecas on Tuesday night he finally got to make his debut.

He came on as half-time substitute, but in his 45 minutes plus a further 10 of injury time he did enough to walk away as the MVP.

Barça had looked rather lacklustre in the first half. In the second they were a different side and Olmo had a lot to do with that improvement. In the 58th minute he struck the crossbar from long range, and two minutes later it was he who started the move that Raphinha and Pedri turned into the equaliser.

Goalscorer

But the best was still to come. In the 82nd minute, he was on the end of a Lamine Yamal pass, and he followed a lovely piece of control with a deft finish to beat Cárdenas and claim the winning goal of the evening.

"I was really keen to make my debut" he said afterwards. "And I did in unbeatable fashion. I felt really good, and I am going home happy after helping the team at ground where they hadn't won for a few years."

For Dani Olmo, August 27 2024 will always be a special date. It was the day he well and truly returned to the place he had always called home. FC Barcelona. Welcome back, Dani!