Lamine Yamal Story
The story of Lamine Yamal is a blend of the good, the bad, and the ugly. He started playing football at a very young age, all thanks to his family. His childhood dream of playing for Barcelona came true when he was invited for a trial in Barcelona, where he passed in just one attempt.
He quickly moved through the ranks and made his debut for the Catalan Giant’s first team in 2023. Lamine was recently in the news as one of the biggest players in the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament. He was one of the important players that helped the Spanish National team to lift the trophy.
This article will explore how Lamine Yamal rose to fame at such a young age. Let’s get right into it!
Yamal’s Story From Childhood Till Date
Yamal is no doubt one of the most prolific players the football world has seen. His full name is Lamine Yamal. The name of his father is Mounir Nasroui and his mother’s name is Sheila Ebana. Mounir and Sheila split up when Lamine was only three years old, but they both played a major role in raising him. The Barcelona youngster has two siblings named Keyne Yamal and Baraa Yamal.
Yamal was born in Esplugues de Llobregat and grew up in Granollers. A little digging into Yamal’s background shows that he is multiracial because he has Moroccan, Equatorial Guinea, and Spanish ancestry. His father was born in Morocco, and Sheila, his mother, was born in Equatorial Guinea. You can also check out the childhood stories of other top players in the world at Waitakere United.
How Did Yamal Grow Up to Become One of the Best Footballers?
Yamal was playing at his local club, CF La Torreta before he joined Barcelona at seven. As the story goes, a random guy saw Yamal playing from the stands in one of his training sessions, and he called Barcelona that they had to give Yamal a chance. He didn’t need more than one trial to break into one of the junior teams of Barcelona in 2014 at seven years old. And the rest they say is history today.
Everything happened so fast for Yamal because he didn’t stay too long in the U19s before he was called to join Barcelona’s first team. He made his first debut for the team at the age of 15 years when his team played against Real Betis.
As a result, he became the youngest player to represent Barcelona in a competition. Yamal has won several awards in Barcelona, including the Youngest Player to Play for Barcelona and the Youngest Player to Start the Champions League.
Yamal’s Club Career in Barcelona
He made his first team debut on the 29th of April 2023, when he was brought in as a substitute for Gavi in the 83rd minute in a 4-0 La Liga win over Real Betis. The Barcelona striker won his first La Liga title with Barcelona on the 14th of May 2023.
After the 2022/23 season, he continued training with the Barcelona first team for the pre-season of 2023/24. Although registered with the B squad, the striker became a regular starter for the first team under Coach Xavi Hernandez. Yamal set new records in the 2023/24 season with Barcelona, becoming the youngest player to reach 50 appearances for the first team.
He also set new records for scoring goals and creating chances in competitions like the Champions League and the Copa del Rey. Throughout the 2023/24 season in Barcelona, he made 50 appearances and scored seven goals.
On the 20th of August 2023, Lamine played his next game after his debut against Real Betis where he came in as a substitute. He played in Barcelona’s game against Cadiz, where his team won by two goals to nil. The Barcelona forward was exceptional throughout his time on the pitch as he contributed to the two goals in the match.
On the 2nd of October, 2023, Lamine extended his contract with Barcelona until 2026, with a release of one billion euros.
Yamal’s International Career in Spain?
Lamine has also risen through the ranks in the Spanish National team. He played for the Spanish U15 and U16 teams at the start of his international career. Then, he joined the U17 squad for the European U17 Championship. Spain didn’t make it to the final of the competition as they lost to France in the semi-finals. Yamal scored a total of four goals in this competition.
His exceptional performance at the European U17 Championship got him invited to Spain’s senior team on the 1st of September 2023 for the 2024 Euro qualifier. Yamal’s debut game for the Spanish national team was against Georgia, where the team won by seven goals to one. At just 16 years and 57 days old, this fantastic player has set a new record as the youngest player and goalscorer for the Spanish national team.
Yamal’s performance throughout the UEFA Euro 2024 was nothing short of brilliant. According to UEFA.com, Yamal’s stat in the UEFA Euro 2024 shows that he played seven matches, scored one goal and had four assists. His goal against France is among the top ten goals of the UEFA Euro 2024.
Players and Clubs Yamal Looked up to While Growing up
It has always been Yamal’s dream to be a Barcelona player since he started playing football professionally. This dream is coming true sooner than he expected because he’s only 17 years old, and he’s playing with the biggest players in the world.
In a recent interview with the Barcelona striker, he said he hopes to keep playing at Barcelona for the next 10 years. One of the players he looked up to while growing up is former Barcelona player, Lionel Messi. He was even called “Little Messi” in some of the clubs he played for while growing up.
Conclusion
Yamal is one of the youngest players in the world to achieve club and international success. What makes him stand out from other players is his strength and composure on the ball. Like Messi, he knows how to break the defense line of his opponent and create chances for his teammates. We can only hope he meets and surpasses the achievements of his idol, Messi.
