Barcelona president Joan Laporta has named Lamine Yamal as the best player in the world right now as he acknowledged the 18-year-old has flashed signs of an early Lionel Messi.
Yamal celebrated his 18th birthday last month by taking ownership of the No. 10 shirt made famous by Messi, having firmly established himself as one of the world’s elite talents across his 106 appearances for Barcelona to date.
Comparisons between Yamal and Messi have been frequent since the teenager’s debut and, while Laporta attempted to ease the pressure on the current Barcelona star’s shoulders, he confessed the pair both possess era-defining qualities which are rarely seen.
“Leo is Leo and Lamine is Lamine,” Laporta told CNN. “Messi has been the best player in history, but Lamine, right now, is the best player in the world. We will see how far he can go.
“He has an impressive personality, like Messi in his early days. He also has a surprisingly precocious maturity, like Leo. We’re talking about a true football genius, of which there are very few and who defines an era.”
Despite clearly putting an intense spotlight on Yamal, Laporta went on to insist such immense expectations are not helpful for a player so young.
“We have to surround him with stability and not burden him with expectations,” Laporta proclaimed. “He has a unique talent, and it’s our duty to protect him.”
Yamal scored his first goals as Barcelona’s No. 10 in a chaotic 7–3 win over FC Seoul, after which he admitted following in Messi’s footsteps has always been a dream of his.
“To be able to score with this shirt and this number is very special,” he told the media. “It’s a dream I’ve had since I was a child. I’m very happy with the team’s victory. We are very grateful for the support we receive everywhere and we hope that this season will be very successful and we will win many titles.”
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as ‘Best in the World’—Barcelona President Weighs in on Lamine Yamal, Lionel Messi Comparisons.
