At just 17 years old, Lamine Yamal has become one of the brightest stars in world football. Trained at La Masía, the young FC Barcelona winger made his debut with the first team in April 2023 under Xavi Hernández, and his rise since then has been nothing short of spectacular. With a brilliant season in which he has scored 18 goals and provided 25 assists across all competitions, he has developed a deadly partnership with Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski in Barça's attack.

His performances have been crucial both at the club level and for the Spanish national team, with whom he won the European Championship, playing a key role. One of his standout games was the Champions League semifinal against Inter Milan, where he tormented the Italian defense. In the first leg, he consistently beat Federico Dimarco, and in the second leg, even double and triple marking couldn’t stop him.

Zidane full of praise for Barça’s young star

Yamal’s brilliance hasn’t gone unnoticed by football legends. Zinédine Zidane, former Real Madrid coach and World Cup winner with France, didn’t hold back his admiration during an Adidas event:

“When I watched the second half against Inter in the semifinals, I had never seen anything like it,” he said. “It’s incredible to see someone master their craft like that on the field. It was truly fabulous.”

Zidane isn’t the only one who has praised the youngster. Simone Inzaghi, Inter’s coach, said after the first leg that “Yamal is a talent you only see once every 50 years.” Goalkeeper Wojciech Szczęsny, who has faced him recently, also acknowledged the Spaniard’s extraordinary level.

Zidane with his eyes on the future

Meanwhile, Zidane is preparing to return to coaching. It has been four years since he left Real Madrid, and although he turned down offers such as Bayern Munich due to not speaking German, his dream is to manage the French national team.

“I feel I’m legitimate to coach France, I played there for many years. It’s a dream, but right now we have to respect the current coach,” he said, referring to Didier Deschamps.

With Deschamps set to leave after the 2026 World Cup, Zidane might be counting down the days for his comeback, while continuing to enjoy the magic displayed by emerging talents like Lamine Yamal.