If you watched the Euro 2024 or at least were alive when the tournament took place, then you most likely had heard the name “Lamine Yamal”. The youngster had the world on his feet as he put on a show of consistent avalanche display that spiked him to global stardom. But is Lamine Yamal really that good? Is he the heir to the throne left vacant since Messi’s dramatic departure from Barcelona?
Lamine Yamal made his professional senior debut for Barcelona in late spring of 2023 at just 15 and has since gone ahead to break and hold a lot of records including “youngest player to start a Laliga game, youngest Laliga goal scorer, the youngest player to feature in a champions league knock out stage and most significantly youngest player to win a major trophy”. Without a doubt, it is plausible to rank him as the number-one breakout youngster of the season and well-befitting for the upcoming “Golden Boy Awards” as the young baller at just 17 has accomplished great feats that even the top-tier ballers of our contemporary ages could only dream of at such an amateur age.
Regardless of all the heights attained, records broken, and the media hype behind Yamal, is it farfetched to ascertain the teenage prodigy as the heir to Lionel Messi, or is he just another “Ansu Fati” heading for doomsday? The youngster has been rock solid for club and country in the past season, making a massive 51-club appearance for The Culers raking in 7 goals in the process. Although that may not sound like a huge number, it is intelligible to note that Yamal brings more than just goals to the table, as his incredible pace, precise dribbling, vision, and ability to link up play is very crucial to the game. Last season, the teenager had the best dribble success rate in Laliga finishing ahead of big names like “Rodrigo, Vinicius, and Bilbao pal Nico Williams. His style of play fits perfectly into the former gaffer “Xavi Hernandez’s high-press as he can exploit space and break in bottleneck speed to progressively orchestrate a threatening counter.
But are all these enough to reckon him as the next Messi? Barcelona has since considered offering Lamine the famed No. 10 jersey but had to reconsider due to age and the pressure of responsibilities that come with it. Nevertheless, he’d be wearing a new number next season, which is the No. 19 jersey, which was Messi’s number for two seasons at the club (2007/2007, 2007/2008).
Lamine Yamal has undoubtedly proved his quality, especially with his tantalizing performance at the recently concluded Euro 2024, where he had a whooping 5goal+assists aggregate in just six appearances, most notably his record-breaking popular screamer against France in the semi-finals of the tournament. This young lad seems destined for greatness and a couple of Ballon d’Or in the future, perhaps, but I reckon he needs a break from all the comparisons and media hypes to Messi as the standard set by the legend is practically unreal, lest proclaiming a 16years breakout youngster the new Messi seems quite rash!
Lamine should be lifted from the inundated pressures by the media and left to do his thing and develop naturally as a footballer to attain his maximum potential. One thing is sure, this kid for sure possesses immense skill and talent capable of writing his name amongst one of the footballing greats. As for the Messi comparisons and heirship, only time will tell, and hopefully, his career trajectory will take the right course.
