Abel Ruiz will make an important decision on his future next week

Abel Ruiz arrived at Barça when he was just 12 years old. He, like any child, was delighted to be at one of the best clubs in the world of football. He's since grown as a footballer but also as a person.

At the beginning, it was his physical qualities which stood out and made him appear ahead of his peers. But thoughout the years that didn't prove to be the case. Abel was - and is - much more than just a physical beast, and much more than simply a goalscorer.

He brings a lot to the team and leads by example, as proven by his captaincy for Spain's U17 and U19 sides. He finished as runners up in the Euros with the U17s but went one step further and won the tournament with the U19s.

At 19, seven years after his arrival at Barça, Abel is at a crucial stage of his career. On one side is his dream to play at the Camp Nou with the first team. That remains his priority. But there are also significant offers from elsewhere which might interest the young forward.

On Friday, the player's representatives met with Eric Abidal and Patrick Kluivert and let them know that Abel's priority was to remain at Barça, but that he had received offers from other clubs.

Both Abidal and Kluivert let them know they had full confidence in Abel and his ability to make it at Barça. The Dutch striker, in particular, feels that the youngster has a lot of similar qualities to him.

Abidal and Kluivert also told Abel's representatives that Ernesto Valverde is also a big fan of his and plans to take the striker to the United States despite having a full squad to choose from.

Abel was delighted to hear he had the backing from the most important people at Barça. However, those important offers remain on the table and perhaps he feels that he'll get more playing time elsewhere. This is why the club has given him one week to think about what he would like to do.