FC Barcelona ace Lamine Yamal returned to provoking Real Madrid – an in particular a club legend and current first team star – after winning El Clasico on Sunday.
The youngster brushed off San Siro heartbreak suffered midweek against Inter Milan in the Champions League semifinals and was in top form against Carlo Ancelotti’s men for a tie that could essentially win La Liga this term.
After a quarter of an hour in Montjuic, it seemed as though Barca might have been affected by its UCL last four KO after once more heading two goals down early as it had done to the Italians home and away.
With Eric Garcia pulling one back for the Blaugrana, however, Lamine scored an equalizer and played a pivotal role in the mayhem that ensued and found Barca leading 4-2 come half time.
Hansi Flick’s men held on for a 4-3 victory come full time, which means that Lamine’s second La Liga crown can be sealed by winning at another arch nemesis’ expense in Espanyol on Thursday night.
Post match, the 17-year-old was in a typically defiant mood. He headed to Instagram to make fun of telling unsuspecting tourists that didn’t initially recognise him his name was Ryan, when they asked the Golden Boy to take a photo of them in Barcelona.
To caption a photo celebrating his equalizer and asking for calm, though, he also added “like this one too”.
That was a nod to Madrid legend Sergio Ramos and current first team star Jude Bellingham both “liking” a post from Inter Milan center back Alessandro Bastoni that had Lamine on the floor.
Just a matter of days later, though, the prodigious teenager appears to have the had the last laugh with Barca commemorating a fourth victory over Los Blancos this term and now closing in on a domestic treble.
“It was a very important game to get a considerable distance. After the Champions League match it was very important to win and even more so if it was against Madrid. Today it’s time to enjoy it,” Lamine said to Movistar following the full time whistle.
It’s something very special how the fans support us. It hasn’t been an easy year because we haven’t played at the Camp Nou and they’ve had to travel here. We are very grateful,” he then added.
As for the continental setback, Lamine revealed how “in the end I told my mother, the Champions League is every year. We’ll keep trying, but today it was important to win to get closer to the league title.”
Lamine vows to deliver for FC Barcelona
Alongside his goalscoring and assist exploits, many Culers are also impressed by the way that Lamine takes so much responsibility on his shoulders.
Though he will come up short in 2024/2025, the youngster that is still not old enough to drive in his homeland sees it as his personal responsibility to deliver a first UCL crown for FC Barcelona since Lionel Messi and one of this year’s finalists Luis Enrique did a decade ago in Berlin.
