"We turned down offers from Chelsea, Man City and Juve"

Ilaix is set to become one of La Masia's stars in the very near future. He has made his first team debut under Koeman and he has taken part in an 'El Clasico'. But there was a moment when he could have left the Catalan capital. 

Mamady Moriba, Ilaix's father, revealed that "better offers from Chelsea, Man City and Juventus" came in, but they were turned down. "With City, we cancelled a flight on the same day it was due to leave. I visited the facilities, but we decided to stay in Barcelona. We passed up the chance to get a lot of money because Ilaix wanted to play here," he said. 

He was asked about possible contact with Real Madrid, but he did not reveal anything about that. Ilaix's father did not give any more clues, but did say that there was a point when his Barca future was in doubt due to interest from several big clubs.

"I don't what to say about Koeman. We have to thank him greatly for what he's done for Ilaix and the confidence he has given him. Also thank the club and all them who have been with Ilaix at La Masia. We have a very good friendship with Ramon Planes and Mr Bakero," Mamady Moriba added.

Now, however, everything has changed for Ilaix. He is just 18 years old and he now shines in the first team squad. He shows boldness in midfield which is out of the reach of any normal youngster.

"I've just come from my country and almost the whole of Guinea support Barca because of Moriba. 90% of the country are following him and supporting Barca because of the opportunity they've given Ilaix," his father explained. He also defended the attitude of his son against Casemiro against Real Madrid. "I liked his attitude because you always have to protect your leader (Messi)."