Lamine Yamal interview: ‘Sometimes titles slip away unexpectedly’

There have been points this season when Lamine Yamal, Barcelona’s mercurial 17-year-old star, has looked like the best player on the planet.

Since breaking through into the Barcelona first team at the age of 15 Yamal has made a meteoric rise into the stratosphere of world soccer. He has become a key player for Barça and a regular for the Spanish national team, helping them to Euro 2024 glory last summer. Now, he is in the hunt for club success.

Barcelona are currently level with Real Madrid at the top of LaLiga and remain in contention for both the Champions League and Copa del Rey. As we approach the final stages of the 2024/25 season, Yamal sat down with AS to talk titles.

‘Sometimes titles slip away’

For all his incredible on-ball talents, what really sets Yamal apart from 99% of prodigious youngsters is his mental maturity. He plays with the wisdom of a player twice his age and manages to contend with the overwhelming, all-consuming pressure that a club that Barcelona exerts.

The Spanish title is the No. 1 target for Barcelona at the start of every season and this one is no different. With a run of eight LaLiga wins on the bounce Barcelona are the in-form team in the league, but the young star isn’t getting carried away. He knows that this year’s championship could be decided by fine margins.

“I think it will go to the team that makes the fewest mistakes. Both Barça and Madrid are world-class teams that rarely drop points and are in good form. I think the Clásico in May, at Montjuïc, will be very important... as was the one we played on Sunday at the Metropolitano against Atlético. But sometimes leagues are decided in games that slip away from you unexpectedly.

“It happened to us in December, against Betis and Leganés. If we had won those, we would have a good advantage now. But the fact is that we went into March tied on points and the Clásico at Montjuïc could be key.”

Champions League dreams for Lamine Yamal

The last few years have been a period of upheaval for Barcelona, with a carrousel of transfers and a long list of coaching changes. They have managed to win silverware in that time but the big one, the Champions League, has eluded them.

Barça’s most recent UCL triumph came with the iconic 2014/15 team of Luis Enrique, with the attacking trident of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez and Neymar Jr. That was the team that Yamal grew up watching, idolising, and that he now attempts to emulate.

“It’s a competition that has captivated me since I was a kid, ever since I heard the Champions League anthem on TV. Imagine coming home late on a Tuesday after training with the youth team, turning on the TV with my parents, and watching the European Cup. Well, it’s something very special.”

So far in his young career, Lamine Yamal has been on a near-perfect rise to the pinnacle of world soccer. He has established himself as a star for club and country and has already enjoyed the sort international success that many all-time greats never found. Throughout his young career he has been tipped as the the player to take Barcelona back to former glories one day. Somehow, the 17-year-old is living up to those expectations.

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