Although he has seen his talent and skill getting recognized from all the important quarters for the entirety of the last year or so, the Barcelona starlet Lamine Yamal has been receiving a barrage of praise in the last few days, especially for his performance in the match between Spain and France.
In the semi-final of the UEFA EURO 2024 between these two sides, Yamal scored the equalizing goal in the first half, and it was a goal that is going to be remembered for a long time to come because of the way it was scored.
Gary Lineker, one of the most popular English pundits in football, was one of the individuals who spoke highly of the youngster after this match.
As Mundo Deportivo has reported, the Englishman believed that not even some of the biggest names in football had been able to perform at such a level as Yamal has been performing at the age of 16 years:
“Is he really the next superstar? I think it’s a bit unfair to put so much weight on him, but oh boy… Even Messi came later than him. I’m not saying he’s going to be like Messi or Maradona, but he could be.”
“What he’s doing at his age wasn’t even done by Pelé, who was a year older when he scored a double in the World Cup final. I think he’s the best player I’ve seen at 16.”
In a recent BBC program, Linekar used Clive Tyldseley’s famous words about Wayne Rooney to praise Yamal. In this latter interview, the Englishman explained why he did so:
“I remember Rooney when he scored a similar goal with the commentary ‘Remember the name: Wayne Rooney.’ That’s why I closed the program last night with the same phrase: ‘Remember his name, Lamine Yamal.'”
He went on to claim that Yamal’s goal was even more special as it came on a bigger occasion, and was generally impressed a lot by the Barcelona winger’s quality:
“In Rooney’s case, it was with Everton against Arsenal, but Lamine did it in the semifinals of the Euros. I just can’t grasp his football intelligence and the fact that he still goes to school. It’s incredible, amazing, impressive, crazy… but it’s wonderful to see a new talent emerge.”
There is no doubt that Yamal has left everyone in awe with his performance at the highest levels, both with his club and country, at such a young age. Hopefully, he will be able to continue on this path and become the next global superstar at FC Barcelona in the coming years.
