Lamine Yamal has become a key player for Barcelona and the Spanish national team. Despite his youth, he is already one of the best players in the world, backed by his incredible statistics in a season in which he could win four titles with the Blaugrana, having played a starring role in all competitions.
The young academy player is a regular in Hansi Flick’s starting eleven and, at just 17 years old, has already played his 100th game for FC Barcelona. He reached this milestone last week in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final against Inter at Montjuic. It was a match in which the young Barça winger produced a magnificent piece of skill, slipping into the Inter area between several defenders, firing a left-footed shot at the far post, hitting the post and 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.
That night, he not only made his 100th appearance for Barça, but also set several records: Lamine became the second youngest player to play in a UCL semi-final and also became the youngest player to score in a semi-final, surpassing Kylian Mbappé.
Lamine’s new contract
According to Sport, the youth player will renew his contract for five more seasons, until June 2030. With this new contract, the renewal was initially stipulated for only three more years, but Laporta intends to secure one of his best players with the most promising future.
At the moment, the exact amounts of his emoluments are not known, but there has been talk for months that the player wants to be valued financially in line with what he contributes to the Barça team. That is why the new contract would include a salary and a clause in line with his new status and with figures much higher than the previous ones.
LaLiga guarantees the renewal
LaLiga has introduced a key clause in its financial control regulations that will facilitate the registration of the youth player’s new contract. As explained by LaLiga, a youth player can be renewed without affecting the club’s salary cap for that season, even if it is exceeded, as is currently the case with Barça. However, the rule is not a blank check. Any excess over the salary cap must be recovered during the course of the season or will be deducted from the following season’s salary cap.