Over the past two decades the football world had gotten used to an FC Barcelona forward tormenting the defenders, scoring outrageous goals, possessing exceptional playmaking skills, and lighting up the right wing. Three years after Lionel Messi’s exit from Barca, the Catalonian club may have done the impossible, and found a perfect replacement for the Argentine legend. Lamine Yamal, the youngster whose attacking prowess seems second to none, has successfully established himself as one of the most dangerous attackers in football with his performance at the Euro 2024 tournament where he became the youngest player to ever play in a major tournament final overtaking none other than Pele.

Born and raised in Catalonia, Lamine was co-parented by his father Mounir Nasraoui, and mother Sheila Abana. The couple had gotten divorced when Yamal was just three years old. Lamine arrived at FC Barcelona at the age of seven from his local club CF La Torreta. At La Masia, he raced through the age categories quicker than any other player of his age showing the potential that he holds.

A recent photo went viral of a 20-year-old Lionel Messi posing for a photo with Lamine Yamal, who at the time was just eight months old further strengthening the belief in fans all over the world that the two players are in some way connected.

Lamine’s family had won a raffle in the town of Mataró, Catalonia. The raffle was sponsored by Diario Sport and UNICEF and offered winners the chance to have pictures taken with Barcelona players.

Lamine’s rapid rise to prominence began when he started training with Barca’s first team at just 15 years old, at the request of coach Xavi Hernandez. He made his debut for the first team in April 2023, becoming the youngest player ever to represent the club.

After an impressive 2022/23 campaign, Lamine continued with the first team for preseason in 2023/24 and became a regular presence in the squad. He set multiple records for the club, including being the youngest player to reach 50 appearances and impressive goal-scoring and assisting tallies in various competitions.

Despite his young age, Lamine has already shown immense promise and is expected to be a key player for FC Barcelona in the years to come.

In just a matter of one single season, Lamal has grown accustomed to having his name in the record books. The 17-year-old is the youngest player to represent FC Barcelona at 15 years, 9 months, and 16 days and scored seven goals in 50 appearances in the 2023/24 season.

He then went on to make his mark outside of La Liga at the 2024 European Championship where he ended the campaign as the Young Player of the Tournament having one goal and four assists to his name.

The whole world now knows the name of Lamine Yamal and will tune into Barcelona games to watch the young phenom play from the 2024/25 season.

“Better late than never” said England talisman Jude Bellingham, on his latest Instagram post, after his team’s dramatic win over the Netherlands in the second Euro 2024 semi-final. Ollie Watkins scored a superb last-minute goal, to send the Dutch packing, and keep the dream of ‘bringing it home’ alive. Away from the goals and the celebrations, a certain teenager in the middle of the park is slyly running away with the headlines. Teenage sensation Kobbie Mainoo has had a tremendous campaign at the base of midfield, carrying on from his terrific season with Manchester United.

England will face Spain in the final on Sunday. Both sides, on paper are incredibly well-rounded, with a wealth of experience and quality. But for both sides, the biggest talking points of the tournament have been their teenage superstars.

Soon to be 17-year-old livewire Lamine Yamal took the breathe away from millions watching the game, scoring an absolute scorcher in the semis against France. The Barcelona winger has been outstanding all throughout the tournament, becoming the youngest goalscorer ever in the semi finals of a major tournament. Yamal has racked up 4 goal involvements in the campaign so far, making a strong case for being named Player of the Tournament if Spain are to win Euro 2024.

Although Mainoo doesn’t fill the statsheet in the obvious ways, his impact on the team has arguably been as much as Yamal’s. The 19-year-old has completed more than 95% of his passes with a staggering dribble percentage of 98%. Incredibly composed on the ball, playing line-breaking passes and dribbling out of trouble, Mainoo has provided the England midfield a brand new dimension. In the semi final, Mainoo played more of a reserved role at the base of the midfield, winning 100% of his duels and tackles. Mainoo’s skillset has enabled Declan Rice to be more expansive with his game, bombing forward at every opportunity possible.

After a disappointing Finals loss in the last Euros, England will be determined to put in a big shift in Berlin. But on the other side, they face Spain, who have arguably been the best team to watch so far. And as mentioned above, all eyes will be on the battle of the teens, as Lamine Yamal and Kobbie Mainoo go head-to-head, vying to win their respective nations the big prize.

The legendary Argentine footballer Lionel Messi, often called the ‘greatest footballer of all time’, celebrates his 37th birthday on Monday. Messi born in Rosario, Argentina, in 1987, recently, won his eighth Ballon d’Or, setting a new record. The next player is the Portuguese icon Cristiano Ronaldo, who has won five Ballon d’Or awards. At the age of 13, Messi’s family along with him shifted to Barcelona where the club assisted him in treating his growth hormone deficiency. The Argentinean began his career with FC Barcelona’s U14 squad. He moved up the ranks fast, leaving an impression on everyone with his extraordinary talent and skills.

He made his club debut as a senior at the age of 17 against Espanyol, and the Blaugranas (another name for FC Barcelona) relied heavily on him. The 37-year-old became the team’s youngest star to appear in the competition at the time.

Messi played for the Spanish club for 17 years, during which time he won 10 La Liga titles, 4 Champions League crowns, and 7 Copa del Rey medals. He has scored an astounding 474 goals in La Liga, making him the league’s all-time top scorer.

Messi stunned the whole world when he emulated Diego Maradona’s goal of the century in 2007. In a match against Getafe at Camp Nou during the first leg of the Copa del Rey semifinal, the footballer dribbled past six Getage’s defenders to score the goal.

In 2009, Messi won his maiden UEFA Champions League title. Barcelona defeated Manchester United in the final with a scoreline of 2-0. In the final, the Argentina national football team skipper scored a goal in this match through a header.

In a 3-0 victory for Barcelona over Real Valladolid in 2020, Lionel Messi scored his 644th goal. Messi broke the record for most goals scored for a single club by doing this. Pele, a legendary Brazilian who scored 643 goals for Santos FC, owned the previous record.

The Argentinean national player joined the French 1 League club Paris Saint-Germain and played for the club from 2021-2023. He played a total of 58 games where he managed to score 22 goals for the side.

In 2023, Messi joined the David Beckham-owned Inter Miami. So far he has played 18 matches where he has gone on to score 13 goals.

August 2005 was Messi’s first international appearance. He replaced an injured player against Hungary. However, his tragic international debut was short-lived as he was sent off minutes after hitting Vilmos Vanczak.

During the Beijing Olympics in 2008, Messi’s team, Argentina, took home the gold medal. To help La Albiceleste (another name for Argentina) win their second consecutive Olympic gold, Messi set up the game-winning goal. In the final, they defeated Nigeria 1-0.

In the 2021 Copa America final, Argentina defeated Brazil 1-0 while playing at the Maracana Stadium. With this win, Messi’s lengthy quest for his first significant international championship came to a conclusion.

The FIFA World Cup trophy that Lionel Messi won in Qatar in 2022 was the highlight of his career. In the championship match, Messi scored twice against France. After a 36-year break, Argentina became the world champions via penalty shootout.

World-renowned football club FC Barcelona has decided to shut down all its academies in India, 14 years after starting operations with an aim to train the country’s kids in their famed ‘La Masia (youth academy)’ style. FC Barcelona did not provide any official reason for the closure. All its academies in the Indian cities of Delhi NCR, Mumbai, Bengaluru and Pune will cease to exist from July 1.

“FC Barcelona have informed the families involved in Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore and Pune will cease to operate as Barca Academies from 1 July 2024,” the club said in a statement which it uploaded on its website.

“Barcelona’s presence in India began back in 2010 and since then thousands of youngsters have learned to play football in the Barca style and with the Club’s values.

“Furthermore, India was the venue for two Barca Academy APAC tournament in 2019 and 2020 and the academies have been an ever present in the 11 editions of the Barca Academy World Cup held in Barcelona during Easter Week,” the club added.

Football legends such as Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Gerard Pique achieved their superstardom after undergoing training at the Barca Academy.

In the statement, FC Barcelona expressed gratitude to all the families for their trust in the project over the years, as well as to all the coaches, local staff, and Conscient Football, the club’s India partner that has collaborated on the Barca academies project all these years.

Barca Academy India was the largest grassroots football training and development initiative in India.

As part of the venture, it set multiple football training centres in Delhi, Gurugram, Noida, Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Pune, organising programs, camps, leagues, tournaments, and exposure trips.

Barca Academy is the flagship FC Barcelona school aimed at boys and girls between 4 to 17 years of age and its main objective is to provide a comprehensive training environment for their students.

Lamine Yamal will become the youngest player to ever play at the Euros.© AFP

Hansi Flick occasionally watched Barcelona matches this season from the presidential box.© X (Twitter)

With a triumph over the rival it could never beat, Barcelona made it clear who’s in charge of women’s soccer.

Barcelona ended its losing streak against the game’s most successful club on Saturday, beating Lyon 2-0 to clinch its third Women’s Champions League title in four years.

World player of the year Aitana Bonmatí scored in the second half and former world player Alexia Putellas added a second deep in stoppage time for defending champion Barcelona in front of a record crowd of 50,827 for a final.

“This team has made history. With each passing year we just want more,” said Bonmatí, the player of the match. “The first time we have beaten Lyon, and to do it like this in a final, winning back-to-back Champions League titles … this team deserved it.”

Barcelona lost the two previous finals it played against the French side and all four of its previous matches against Lyon, which was seeking a record-extending ninth European trophy.

“The reality is that Barcelona has taken two consecutive titles and their dynamic is extremely positive, not only regarding results but also about the quality of the game and the amount of support that they have,” Lyon coach Sonia Bompastor said. “The other clubs, not only Lyon, have to be motivated by that and try to find ways to beat that.”

Victory gave Barcelona a quadruple of trophies: Champions league, Spanish league, Copa de la Reina and the Spanish Super Cup.

“This is what we worked so hard for,” said Putellas, who struggled to recover her prominent role since returning from a serious leg injury and recently signed a contract extension through 2026. “We are super happy to have won these four titles.”

Barcelona added to its Women’s Champions League titles in 2021 and 2023 in its fourth consecutive final.

“We knew we needed to be a club that made history,” Barcelona defender Lucy Bronze said. “It’s not easy, it’s hard to win it once, but to do it back to back, Lyon showed how difficult it is. This team’s finally done that. We go down in history as one of the best teams in Europe.”

The women’s triumph comes amid continued turmoil in the men’s team, which hasn’t succeeded in Europe recently and saw player great Xavi Hernández leave as the coach on Saturday. Club president Joan Laporta, who sacked Xavi, celebrated the title with the women at the medal ceremony.

Former Barcelona player Lionel Messi congratulated the women’s side on Instagram.

Their success follows Spain’s triumphs last year in the Women’s World Cup and the inaugural Women’s Nations League.

It felt like a home match for Barcelona as its fans occupied most of the seats at San Mames Stadium in Basque Country.

It was an even match from the start, with neither team creating many significant scoring opportunities. Lyon hit the woodwork and goalkeeper Christiane Endler made easy saves at the other end.

Lyon was able to keep Bonmatí in check during most of the match, but she broke through with the opening goal with a nice run into the area before firing a left-footed shot past Endler in the 63rd minute. The ball deflected off the leg of Lyon defender Vanessa Gilles.

Putellas came off the bench in stoppage time and scored a few moments later. She celebrated by taking off her jersey and running toward the fans.

Bompastor, the first woman to win the Women’s Champions League as a player and coach, was trying to become the first woman to win two titles as a coach.

Lyon was playing in its 11th final in 15 seasons, and was seeking its first title since it beat Barcelona in the 2022 final. The French club also defeated Barcelona in the 2019 final. It won five titles in a row from 2016-20.

“I’m very emotional. No one likes to lose a final. You’re here to win it,” Lyon defender Danielle van de Donk said. “It’s a shame you don’t create enough. Barcelona overtook the game, and they kind of deserved the win. I’m still very proud of my team. We gave it our all. We have some regrets, of course, but hopefully next year we’re back again.”

Lyon star striker Ada Hegerberg, who had been listed as doubtful because of a muscle injury, only got into the final in the 81st.

Barcelona became the third club with three Women’s Champions League titles, behind the eight of Lyon and the four of Eintracht Frankfurt.

Barcelona coach Jonatan Giráldez was in his final match before joining U.S. club Washington Spirit.

“When I decided in December to leave at the end of the season, people thought the team’s performances might dip,” he said. “We showed that wasn’t the case today. An amazing performance, and a deserved victory.”

Barcelona sacked coach Xavi Hernandez on Friday after the club failed to win a trophy.© AFP

Young Barcelona midfielder Fermin Lopez struck twice to secure his team a hard-fought 2-0 win at Almeria on Thursday in La Liga. The 21-year-old reached 10 goals for the season in his breakthrough campaign on a night Barcelona struggled but eventually overcame their already-relegated opponents. In the hours before the game Spanish media reported Barcelona president Joan Laporta did not travel to the match in Almeria because he was unhappy with coach Xavi Hernandez’s pre-match comments.

Xavi had highlighted the club’s financial difficulties in comparison to the strength of new Spanish champions Real Madrid.

“They haven’t told me anything personally… we travelled with the sporting vice-president, more directors, all normally,” Xavi told reporters.

“I said what I think is real, that we will fight for all the trophies, with a lot of hope, with ambition, but that the situation is not easy.

“We are working very well, the club most of all, to change this situation.”

In January, with the team struggling badly, the coach said he would leave at the end of the season. He changed his mind in April after the team had gone on a strong run, despite being knocked out of the Champions League in the quarter-finals.

Los Blancos took the title back out of Barcelona’s hands without breaking a sweat, suffering just one defeat and winning with four games to spare, while reaching the Champions League final.

For Barcelona it is a trophyless season but the Catalans are close to securing second place, ahead of upstarts Girona, third and now four points behind.

Lopez’s goals did the job in the south-east of Spain but it was far from a vintage performance from Barcelona against their relegated, rock-bottom opponents.

They took the lead after 14 minutes, with Lopez showing his knack for arriving in the area with perfect timing to reach Hector Fort’s cross and nod home.

‘Fight for second’

Leo Baptistao missed the hosts’ best chance of the first half, firing wide when well placed.

Lamine Yamal threatened as Barcelona sought a second, while Adri Embarba fired against the upright at the other end. 

Anthony Lozano fired off-target with the goal at his mercy, demonstrating some of the issues Almeria have had this season.

Lopez doubled Barcelona’s lead after 67 minutes with a well-taken finish from Sergi Roberto‘s cut-back and that was enough to kill off Almeria’s hopes of taking anything from the game.

“I’m happy to help the team with goals but above all for the win,” Lopez told Movistar.

“We will fight for second until the end, it’s our objective now.”

Earlier Betis and Las Palmas shared the spoils in an entertaining battle which finished 2-2, with a point not entirely pleasing either side.

The Canary Islanders, 14th, are six points clear of the relegation zone and if Pejino had scored a last gasp chance, they would now be safe.

Betis lost two points in the tussle for Europa League football against Real Sociedad and had key playmaker Isco hobble off after taking a knock to the calf.

Real Sociedad beat Valencia 1-0 to jump into sixth place, a point ahead of Betis, seventh, with the sides meeting in Seville on Sunday in a crunch clash.