As Chelsea’s new signing Marc Guiu sat alongside his grandfather, Manel, at our Cobham training ground, it didn’t take long for everyone else in the room to appreciate the special bond between them.

‘I started playing football because of my grandad, because of you,’ Marc explained, turning to face Manel. ‘You were a huge inspiration to me as a child playing on the pitch all day.’

‘I appreciate that and all your sacrifices,’ Manel responded.

‘You have made it to where you always said you would. Do you remember how you would say, ‘Do you know where I will play?’ and I would reply, ‘Where?’ and you would say, ‘The Premier League’.

‘And you see, you've made it. Well done, Marc. Well done, son.’

The emotion is evident as Manel begins to cry and proudly pats Marc’s leg several times before the pair embrace.

Manel continued: ‘For me, it is a dream come true. I had played a bit of football in my time and when I saw him play as a young boy, I don't know why, I knew one day he would make it. And he has.

‘So, what I was unable to do because I retired very early [at 27], he has managed to do, so the excitement is huge..huge.’

Marc added: ‘I've always said my grandfather is my inspiration to keep going in football – that I am where I am thanks to him and it's all so I can live my dream and his, too.

‘So, it's really important that he is here today because he's been there through it all with me throughout my career so far.’

The last year has been a dream come true for Marc, on so many levels.

After winning the golden boot at last summer’s Under-17 Euros, which he shared with Spain’s rising star Lamine Yamal, in October the then 17-year-old became Barcelona’s youngest player to score on debut when he grabbed the winner against Athletic Bilbao just 23 seconds after coming on as a substitute.

The striker would go on to add a maiden Champions League goal two months later too and would make seven appearances in all competitions last season, including two starts, as the teenager became a regular in Xavi’s matchday squads.

Marc had spent more than a decade with Barcelona’s famed academy, after joining at the age of seven, but as he honed his skills in the garden with his grandad, the youngster already had one eye on England and the Premier League.

It is common to hear a new signing say, ‘I could never have imagined signing for a club like this when I was younger’. But that was not the case with Marc.

‘I always imagined it [playing in the Premier League]. It was always the two of us that believed I could. We would say that I could make it,’ Marc said.

Manel added: ‘I was convinced because he would always say, ‘I want to play in the Premier League’ and I would say that you will get there but you need to make sacrifices. If we had to train for an extra hour, we had to train for an extra hour. And that's what we did.’

Marc has been described by one of his former Barcelona coaches as ‘a pure centre-forward, a classic number nine’. He is quick, powerful, strong in the air and presses really well.

It isn’t just on the pitch where his coaches have been impressed, describing the 18-year-old as ‘a sensational boy’ whose effort and dedication are an example to team-mates.

Manel said: ‘He's a ten [out of ten] as a footballer but as a person, he's a fifty. He's exceptional. He's my grandson but even if he wasn't my grandson and I just knew him as a person, I would say the same.

‘He's fantastic; his character, everything. And as a footballer, well, you will see.

‘He still has a lot to learn because he is so young but that will come because he has learned so much already.’

The conversation between the pair continued to warm the heart and after yet another answer, Manel turned to his grandson and simply said: ‘It is a dream come true so far, no?’

‘Yes’ came the reply.

Manel grabbed Marc’s leg again as his pride was clear to see and he became emotional once more.

‘Without him, I wouldn't be where I am because I wouldn't have spent all the time I did playing football,’ Marc said. ‘All the times we played football and laughed and trained hard is what kept me going.’

‘We’re two peas in a pod, the two of us,’ Manel added.

The dream of signing for one of the biggest clubs in the Premier League has already been achieved but Marc has no intention of stopping there.

The teenager hopes his goals can fire the Blues to the Premier League and Champions League titles and he wants to become the best centre-forward in the world during his time at Stamford Bridge (read more here).

‘I think he will achieve this,’ Manel said. ‘I know him well and there hasn't been a target that he hasn't been able to reach, and the proof is right here, look where he is now.

‘But it doesn't end here, it's that spirit of his that will take him all the way, maybe further than we can even imagine.’