Fans handed Lamine Yamal injury update days from World Cup opener
The Barcelona winger is recovering from a hamstring injury that kept him out for the final stretch of the domestic season.
Tick tock. Drip. Tick tock. Drip. As the meter filled with time runs perilously low, the other, filled with drops of optimism, slides the other way.
Lamine Yamal is racing to be back fit in time for the World Cup, having suffered a hamstring injury back in April, in a home game against Celta de Vigo. Since then, he has been a regular in Barcelona’s physio room, with the alarm set for June 15, when Spain begin their campaign for their second World Cup star.
The winger shared a video of himself training with the ball in Barcelona, a huge step in his recovery ahead of the World Cup opener against Cape Verde. Only around 2 weeks remain for Lamine Yamal to get back to match fitness for the tournament, yet the latest update will surely put a lot of nervous fans at ease.
Across the season in which Barcelona won LaLiga and the Spanish Super Cup, Lamine Yamal was a key figure in Hansi Flick’s machine, scoring 24 goals and getting 18 assists in all competitions. For Spain, he is perhaps Luis de la Fuente’s most valuable asset, especially when it comes to breaking down low blocks, which Spain will see no shortage of at the upcoming tournament.
And he’s not the only Spain player for whom the clock is ticking. Arsenal midfielder Mikel Merino and Athletic Club forward Nico Williams have both been included in the squad, despite having missed large portions of the 2025/26 season for their clubs due to injury.
Spain open their World Cup account with a game in Atlanta against Cape Verde on June 15. After that, they play against Saudi Arabia at the same venue, on June 21. They then travel south to Guadalajara, where they will take on Marcelo Bielsa’s Uruguay in the final game of Group H.
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