Ferran Torres: Barcelona's second-highest goal-scoring substitute in a season

The past week has once again highlighted the exceptional performances Ferran Torres has been delivering this season, both as a starter and as a substitute. While he was crucial in the starting lineup against Osasuna, his role as a game-changer in his team's 4-1 win over Girona further solidified his impact in Hansi Flick's Barcelona.

Torres has now scored 15 goals this season, his most productive campaign to date, with nine of those goals coming from matches where he started on the bench. This makes him the second-best substitute scorer in a single season in Barcelona history, only behind Juan Antonio Pizzi, whose perfect record of 11 goals in 1996/97 came as a backup to Ronaldo Nazario.

Pizzi netted 11 goals in 36 appearances as a substitute, while Ferran has nine in 23, making his goal-scoring efficiency even higher when entering matches after they've already started. Both surpass Julio Salinas, who also became the go-to substitute for Barcelona during the 1990s under Johan Cruyff. The Basque forward scored eight goals in 19 substitute appearances during the 1991/92 season.

The fourth place in Barcelona's history is shared by Leo Messi and Oscar Garcia Junyent with seven goals. Messi set his record for substitute goals in the 2008(09 season, and as with all statistics involving the Argentine great, his numbers are unmatched. He scored those seven goals in just ten substitute appearances. Oscar reached his seven goals after 22 appearances during the 1995/96 season.

Ferran Torres in the 2024/25 season

Returning to this season, Ferran Torres scored his first goal as a substitute in the very first match he started from the bench, a 7-0 win over Real Valladolid in La Liga matchday four fixture. He also put Barcelona ahead temporarily in his side's 2-2 draw at Benito Villamarin and played a pivotal role in their 2-3 victory at Borussia Dortmund, scoring twice.

The Valencia native scored his fifth goal as a substitute against Real Betis in the 5-1 Copa del Rey last-16 victory and extended his tally to six with a goal that sealed a 2-0 win at Las Palmas in February. His last three goals, without starting in the first XI, came in March - two at the Metropolitano against Atletico Madrid and one more on  Sunday in the 4-1 win over Girona.

In La Liga, considering his moderate amount of minutes, the goals scored this week have propelled Ferran into an intriguing statistic. Among players with at least 300 minutes in Spain's top competition this season, Ferran has the highest goal-scoring average, with 1.02 goals per 90 minutes.

He surpasses teammate Robert Lewandowski's 1.01 and other players who have stood out as substitutes this season, such as Cristhian Stuani (0.96) and Alexander Sorloth (0.91).

A historic Barcelona from the bench

His outstanding performances as a substitute are not an isolated case in Barcelona's 2024/25 season. The Blaugrana have now scored 23 goals from substitutes this season, making them the team with the most goals by substitutes in a single campaign in the club's history.

Barcelona are on the rise in this regard, as one of the previous notable records was held by Xavi's team in the 2023/24 season, with 19 goals. Substitutes also scored 19 goals in the 2021/22 season (partly under Koeman and partly under Xavi), 19 in 2009/10 (under Guardiola), and 19 in 1995/96 (almost entirely under Cruyff).

So far this season, in addition to Torres' nine goals, there have been 14 more, scored by Lewandowski (3), Pablo Torre (2), Dani Olmo (2), Eric Garcia (2), Fermin Lopez (2), Lamine Yamal (1), Frenkie de Jong (1) and Pau Victor (1).