You wonder what went through the spirit of Alaves’ left back, Manu Sanchez, three minutes in the game against Barcelona in Montjuic yesterday.
Lamine Yamal, the player who was assigned Sanchez to mark the next 87 minutes of his life, had been drunk past him And Four other teammates in practically his first involvement of the competition.
Sanchez would be forgiven to think that he could be a long afternoon.
In a sense, Alaves can be happy with how they contain Barcelona in general. The Catalans achieved a Scrappy 1-0 victory at home against a relegation side in a must-win match, after Real Madrid lost the city against Espanyol the night before. The side of Hansi Flick is now four points behind their most important rivals at the top of La Liga, and the title race of 2024-25 feels more alive than ever when we arrive in February.
A full luminaire list on the side of Madrid, including a two-legged Champions League play-off against Manchester City on 11 and 19 February, could do Barca, which is directly through the round of 16 in March, also a favor.
But weeks and maybe months will pass, and Yamal’s shameful early solo -run will linger in the heads of those who were present.
It is nothing new to see fans on the edge of their chair every time Yamal gets the football, but the order that started at 3:45 am on the clock and 14 seconds later was most of the 42,900 attendance at Montjuic Roaring In excitement, louder, louder and louder while he slid by opponent after opponent.
Lamine Yamal. 🤩 #Lalalahighlights | @Fcbarcelona pic.twitter.com/DNKZSOW4KT
– Laliga English (@Lalalaen) February 2, 2025
It is sometimes easy to forget that Lamine Yamal is still only 17 years old.
Let’s go back to the start of this extraordinary movement.
Yamal took possession on the right, his comfort zone, but in half of the Barcelona field. Sanchez immediately pressed him, but the teenager shifted the ball back in the direction it came and immediately wake his first opponent.
After he had disarmed Sanchez with a shoulderfeint and a dribble on his left foot, Alaves’ left wing Tomas Conechny awaited there to double the Spain International Prodigy.
The 17-year-old protected the ball, then burst past both players and cut in to a central area.
Sanchez admitted the defeat on this point and returned to his left role, but Conechny chose to persist, follow Yamal and grab his arm.
More backup was needed.
The attacking midfielder Jon Guridi now attempted to reach Yamal, but the latter already worked in a different gear.
Antonio Blanco, one of the visitors of the visitors, tried to get in Yamal, but a quick film from his left foot meant that Tackle was useless. Yamal continued to move forward.
Now Conechny was back for round two, this time trying to perform a merciless sliding tackle. In a part of his peripheral vision, the Barca wing player saw him coming and quickly switched his ball to the right foot – sent Conechny to Tapas.
Those in the Montjuic stands could be loved every second and never wanted the run to end.
Guridi and Blanco now tried to bring Yamal down again, but again failed.
Alaves’ other midfielder, other Guevara, was now on the path of Yamal and depicted his happiness, but with so many players who now pressed around him, Yamal chose to find his teammate Raphinha in many space on the left.
With a Trivela pass.
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Lamine Yamal’s Trademark Trivela: Dished the artwork of the Barcelona star
(Alex Caparros/Getty images)
Raphinha took a shot on the goal that went wide, although few in the stadium really arranged. The fans still roared for Yamal, which means that the kind of comparisons in their heads with earlier quantities in Barcelona who are understandably trivialized managers, for fear of discharging the hype. But Yamal is not a normal talent.
“Lamine is already one of the best players in the world to be honest,” said Alaves Full-back Sanchez in an interview with the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo. And that was before yesterday’s game.
In the same way here is the starting goalkeeper of Barcelona, Wojciech Szczesny, in an interview with Italian media -outlet La Gazzetta Dello Sport Last week.
“For me it is the two greatest talents I have seen in my life, both (Kenan) Yildiz (at Szczny’s previous club Juventus) and Yamal. They are very different because Lamine is technically absurd. Yildiz is physically stronger. He is already physically ready. But technically, Lamine is … it’s so impressive. So it is really difficult to make a comparison, but they are two extraordinary talents and in my opinion they will both do great things. “
Yamal’s performance On Sunday went further than his breathtaking run. According to Opta, he tried 20 dribbles and succeeded with 11 of them, and it was most like a Barcelona footballer in a single game since the 2005-06 season at least.
Guess whose record he agreed …
Yes, it was Lionel Messi, in 2006-07 against Mallorca. He tried 20 dribbles that day and completed 10 of them.
Yamal was also involved in the goal against Alaves, which was scored by Robert Lewandowski when he tapped in a volleyt shot by the teenager. La Liga did not count it as an assist, because the attempt by Yamal blended by Alaves defender Nahuel Tenaglia before reaching Lewandowski. Let it sit. This season he still leads the competition for that statistics with 11 in 19 games.
His progression has been fantastic since he was broken into in the first team of Barcelona last season, and the people around the club feel blessed to hold such a talent.
In the back of their head, however, there is a quiet debate about the best way to deal with Yamal. If at the age of 17 he is already so fundamental for the club’s general project, what will come for him? What is the best way to ensure that his development stays on the right track, or to make sure that the teen’s spirit can stay in the right place?
Last week, Flick Yamal oppressed in the dying minutes of their last competition phase match in the Champions League, against Atalanta. The teenager was visibly frustrated by the replacement because he enjoyed himself after scoring one goal.
While he moved his way to the couch, Flick stopped him and had a friendly chat to try to smooth things out. Yamal was then called the name Man of the Match and therefore had some media lights to continue. Initially he did not feel in the mood to talk to broadcasters, but eventually agreed after a conversation with the club’s press officers.
(Pedro Salado/Getty images)
It was more described as a heat-of-the-moment situation instead of something with a deeper meaning of that in the dressing room, but in a certain sense reflects how Flick Yamal wants to protect against the public eye and excessive research during press conferences.
Immediately after the victory yesterday he was asked about Yamal’s display and whether it was reminiscent of other club quantities such as Messi and Diego Maradona.
“I am not a fan of comparisons and such,” said Flick. “Lamine is a genius. I have said that in the past. What he did today in some situations was incredible. I am so happy that he is a Barca player and I want him to do this week after week.
“Again, he is only 17.”
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What makes Lamine Yamal such a special football player?
(Top photo: Josep Lago/AFP via Getty images)