The Portugal international, now 26, is enjoying a strong period with Al-Nassr and the national team and has admitted that he would like to return to Europe. But when asked about the possibility of playing for Real Madrid, Félix instead highlighted the importance of his time at Barcelona.
“Playing for Madrid? I would have been the biggest traitor in football. No, no, no,” Félix told AS.
“I really liked being at Barcelona. Well, yes, I was missing Real Madrid, but I am proud to have played for Barcelona.”
The forward said representing Barcelona had fulfilled a childhood dream shared with members of his family.
“It was a childhood dream, mine, my father’s, my brother’s. It was a source of pride,” he said.
Félix spent the 2023-24 season on loan at Barcelona from Atletico Madrid, making 44 appearances in all competitions and scoring 10 goals before returning to Atlético.
The Portuguese retains positive memories of his time at Camp Nou despite the lack of major silverware.
“Obviously being on loan is not the same as being owned. As a player of the club everything is different,” he said.
“In one year anything can happen, you can be very good or very bad, high or low. I have very good memories, although in the end we couldn't win anything.”
Félix’s career has taken him through several major European clubs since Atlético paid €126 million to sign him from Benfica in 2019.
The forward subsequently spent time on loan at Chelsea and Barcelona before another spell away from Atlético with AC Milan. He has now moved to Al-Nassr as he looks to rebuild a career that began with enormous expectations.
His latest comments underline the particular significance he attaches to Barcelona, where he fulfilled his ambition of wearing the club’s shirt even though his spell did not result in a permanent transfer.
Félix has also made no secret of his desire to play in Europe again at some stage of his career.
For now, however, his route back to European football remains unclear. What is clear from his comments is that his memories of Barcelona remain particularly strong, while the prospect of eventually wearing Real Madrid’s shirt does not appear to appeal to him.
After moving between some of Europe’s biggest clubs since his €126 million transfer to Atlético, Félix is now attempting to establish a new chapter at Al-Nassr while continuing to play an important role for Portugal.