Despite his youth, Lamine Yamal is a key player at Barça. The young academy player is a regular in Hansi Flick‘s starting eleven and yesterday, at just 17 years of age, he played his 100th game for FC Barcelona. It was a game in which he shone with his own light, proving himself indispensable and producing plays of such quality that they have earned him all kinds of praise, placing him on a par with Messi and describing him as the best player in the world.
In a crazy game that was an ode to football, Barça wanted to take a key step on their way to the final, but as soon as the game started, Inter surprised the Azulgrana side by quickly taking a 2-0 lead. The first goal came in the first minute of the game from Thuram, who connected with a precise backheel cross, beating Szczesny. Minutes later, Dumfries connected with a volley.
The Culés reacted quickly with a sublime piece of play from Lamine. The young Barça winger conjured up a magnificent move, slipping into the Inter area between several defenders and firing a left-footed shot into the far corner, beating Sommer. It was a move that impressed Erling Haaland himself: “This kid is incredible,” the Manchester City striker posted on his Snapchat account as he watched the game on his tablet.
Lamine’s records
Last night, he not only made his 100th appearance for Barça, but also set several records during the game. Firstly, at 17 years and 291 days, Lamine became the second youngest player to play in a UCL semi-final. He is only behind Julian Draxler, who played for Manchester United against Schalke 04 at Old Trafford at the age of 17 years and 226 days (May 2011).
That wasn’t the only milestone for the Mataró native. Lamine became the youngest player to score in the semifinals, surpassing Kylian Mbappé, who scored at 18 years and 140 days during AS Monaco’s elimination against Juventus in 2017.
Inzaghi surrenders to Lamine Yamal
Inter Milan coach Inzaghi surrendered to the talent of the Barça youth player in the post-match press conference. In his analysis of the game, he dedicated these words to the young player: “Lamine caused us so many problems… He is a talent that comes along once every 50 years. I saw him live for the first time today, we doubled the marking, we tripled it, and what he did…”.
“We adjusted a few things, it’s easier in front of a computer or a microphone. He’s a player who impressed me and caused us a lot of problems in the last half hour,” he added.