The 16-year-old has stood out for in his first two La Liga starts, but neither his club nor national team should be overburdening him at this age
Spain's midfield options at Euro 2020 were embarrassingly good. La Roja could call on Thiago Alcantara, Sergio Busquets, Koke and Rodri in central areas alone. Thiago and Rodri, though, found themselves watching from the bench for the most part. Instead, manager Luis Enrique deployed an 18-year-old Pedri in the starting XI — and kept him on the pitch for every single minute of the tournament.
The Barcelona midfielder would, of course, end up being one of the players of the tournament, announcing himself as one of Europe's brightest talents. Since then, he has only improved, starring for Barca and collecting 18 Spain caps before his 21st birthday. That success has come at a cost, though: Pedri simply cannot stay fit. A series of muscle injuries — a product of overuse in his early years — have prevented him from becoming truly world-class.
It's an eerily familiar tale for Spanish football. They did the same with Ansu Fati, who has been through four knee surgeries — and is still 21. Gavi could also be in danger, logging nearly 8,000 minutes of top-tier football despite only just turning 19.
And now, another potential victim has emerged. Lamine Yamal has excelled for Barcelona in recent weeks, and was arguably the best player on the pitch in their 4-3 win over Villarreal on Sunday. That has led to reports that the 16-year-old is in line for a Spain call-up for September's Euro 2024 qualifiers. He certainly has the talent to play at that level, while there remains a fear that Morocco could tempt him to switch international allegiance, but there is a level of responsibility that must be taken here.
Spain is a country that has, for too long, run its youngsters into the ground at an early age. Yamal, then, should be managed delicately, or risk falling into the same trap as some of his equally promising team-mates who have seen their careers stall at an early age.
Getty ImagesOver-playing teenagers
First, a comparison. There are some eerie similarities between Yamal and the three most recent objects of Spanish national fascination. Gavi, Pedri and Fati are all Barcelona players; all of them were handed their debuts before their 18th birthdays; all were in consideration for national-team honours shortly after; and, crucially, all were swiftly likened to club legends.
Fati was supposedly the next Lionel Messi. Gavi was allegedly Xavi, then maybe Andre Iniesta, then perhaps a mixture of both. Pedri, meanwhile, was — and is still expected to be — the Iniesta replacement that Barca have needed since the iconic midfielder's departure nearly seven years ago.
Those expectations, accordingly, came with heavy usage. Gavi logged almost 4,000 minutes as a 16-year-old, starting 44 of 57 games for club and country in his debut season. Pedri put in nearly 5,000 over nine months, famously playing 74 games at 18. Fati was perhaps better protected — he came into a more established Barca side — but still played well over 1,300 minutes in his debut campaign. He was, in fact, on pace for far more in his second year of senior football, until a torn meniscus ended his season — and curbed his career to this day.
Yamal, for his part, is tentatively on the same trajectory. He made his senior debut at 15, making a cameo against Real Betis during the tail end of the 2022-23 season. Since breaking into the side earlier this month, he hasn't exactly been monitored, playing at least 75 minutes in each of his first two starts for Barca. Given his impact on both games, Yamal is certainly in line for more. Overuse is, potentially, imminent.
AdvertisementYamal's breakthrough
This all came about by force. Yamal proved towards the end of last season that he could be ready for first-team football. But Xavi, rather shrewdly, protected the teenager's young legs, only allowing him eight senior minutes — despite having him around the first team for two months. Instead, he relied on regulars Raphinha and Ousmane Dembele to see out the title-winning campaign.
But now, things have changed. Dembele has left for Paris Saint-Germain in a big-money move. Raphinha, naturally, assumed his spot in the XI, but earned himself a two-game suspension for an admittedly comical elbow to the back of an opposing defender's head in Barca's season-opener at Getafe. Yamal came off the bench in that game, creating Barca's best chance in an otherwise drab 0-0 draw, and when a spot opened up in the starting XI, Xavi turned to the teenager.
It made sense at the time. Aside from Raphinha, Yamal is the only other naturally left-footed attacker in Barca's first-team squad. And Xavi's penchant for deploying an inverted winger on the right side — with an aim of finding incisive angled passes to Robert Lewandowski — made his inclusion near automatic. In order for Xavi to avoid changing his system, or utilising an imperfect fit, Yamal basically had to play.
The next Messi?
The confetti hadn't been removed from the pitch after Yamal's match-winning performance for Barca against Tottenham at the Olympic Stadium in their annual pre-season finale, the Joan Gamper Trophy, when Spanish publication made the dreaded comparison. Yamal, they claimed, is the best prospect Barca have produced since Messi.
They recalled a previous Gamper held at the same venue between Barcelona and Juventus, in 2005, when an 18-year-old Messi dominated the Bianconeri, producing a magical assist for Iniesta in an enthralling 2-2 draw. It is now regarded as Messi's breakout showing in a Barca shirt. The symmetry of a left-footed right winger having a similar impact, in the same fixture, 18 years later, was almost too good to ignore.
Yamal has been burdened with the Messi comparison for some time now. In 2019, La Liga's official Twitter account posted a Yamal highlight video, dubbing him a 'mini Leo Messi.' Shortly after, a headline in read "Lamine Yamal shows shades of Messi". He was 12 at the time.
Xavi didn't help the hype back in April, when he admitted that Yamal is a "similar player" to the club legend. A cursory YouTube highlights search yields results such as "Lamine Yamal SHOW vs Tottenham | Messi Vibes. 🔥" and "That's why LAMINE YAMAL is the NEW MONSTER of BARCELONA / NEW MESSI."
Such is the life of a promising attacking player from La Masia, of which there are many. But there is some truth in the accepted claim that Yamal is the academy's best product in years. He is an excellent dribbler, quality finisher, and supreme athlete for his age. The tools are all there.
But, perhaps more than anything, it is his decision-making that stands out. Crucially, Yamal knows when to dribble, and when to pass — something that can be missing in young wingers who are aiming to impress. He has completed seven of his eight take-ons in his last two starts, completed at least 80 percent of his passes, and put half of his shots on target. Throw in an assist and two shots against the woodwork, and Barca have an immensely talented, and equally intelligent right winger who can truly be a difference-maker for a top level team. Sound familiar?
instagram.com/lamaryamalSpain's risk vs reward
Spain, then, are faced with a choice. All indications suggest that Yamal will be called up to the senior squad this week. GOAL can confirm that he has all-but spurned Morocco — who he also has eligibility for — in anticipation of a cap for La Roja. He has previous with Spain, too, tallying 21 appearances for four different age-group sides.
Top-level international football arguably doesn't make enough use of its youth set-ups, but Yamal seems to have done enough at every age group to convince the senior staff, and manager Luis de la Fuente, that he is ready for a senior appearance.
Still, is it worth it? Spain's road to Euro 2024 should be relatively straightforward, even if they have already lost to Scotland and still have two matches against Erling Haaland and Martin Odegaard-led Norway to come in Group A. They should be able to make do without having to add to Yamal's workload. They will have to make do without Pedri during the upcoming break — who, in an entirely predictable turn of events, has aggravated a muscle injury — but there is ample talent in the side to beat both Georgia and Cyprus in their next qualifiers.
Perhaps the inverse is also true. These two fixtures could be ideal test runs for Yamal. After all, Cyprus, at ranked 118th, 108 spots below Spain in FIFA's world rankings. Georgia are technically better, ranked at No.78, but shouldn't offer much of a threat aside from Napoli star Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. Maybe that's what Yamal needs — low-pressure games, where the attention from outside Spain will likely be low. Give the 16-year-old 45 minutes, get the social media clicks sorted, and send him back to Catalunya with few extra miles in his legs.
That, unfortunately, is not the Spanish way. If Yamal is to be called-up, history suggests this could be the start of a lengthy process of muscle disintegration and career shortening.