While Liverpool superstar Mohamed Salah might have something to say about it, Barcelona teenager Lamine Yamal has a genuine claim for being the best player on the planet right now.
Starring in the Champions League this season, Yamal has already played more than 100 games at senior level. He already has 19 caps for Spain and was a key man as it won the European Championship in 2024, and yet he was only born in 2007.
Things have been going pretty well for the wonderkid, and the 17-year-old has revealed that he would like to play at Anfield one day. Yamal has now joined the likes of LeBron James, Lionel Messi and Erling Haaland as being an ambassador for Beats by Dre.
As part of the partnership being confirmed, he spoke on a range of topics, including making his admiration for the Premier League clear. “Right now, outside of Barca, I think [Ousmane] Dembele or Bukayo Saka are doing really well,” he said, via Goal.
He went on to say there are lots of stadiums that he would love to play in. “There are so many I’ve yet to experience, especially outside of Europe,” he said. “In Europe, some of the iconic ones I’d like to play in are Old Trafford and Anfield.”
That will no doubt happen at some point. Yamal is already one of the leading players in the game and he doesn’t turn 18 until July. He will be a Champions League regular in the years to come and already looks a safe bet to take on something at least close to a Messi-like status in the game.
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“I don’t want to compare myself with the best player in football’s history,” he said before his stunning first-leg performance against Inter, referencing the comparisons to Messi. At this stage, however, Yamal has done more than the Argentine had.
By the same age, Messi had scored once in nine senior games for Barcelona. Cristiano Ronaldo, meanwhile, had netted five goals in 19 games for Sporting CP.
Yamal, in contrast, has 22 goals and 27 assists for Barcelona so far, plus four goals in his 19 appearances for Spain. Neither Messi nor Ronaldo made their debut for their countries until they turned 18.
What Yamal is producing at the moment is the kind of numbers someone 10 years his senior would be proud of in their peak. And at such a young age, he is already world-class.
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“He is fast, strong, good on the ball, and has all the qualities,” Arne Slot said today when he was asked about Liverpool center-back Jarell Quansah. “He has already shown that, to play as a center-back for this club.
“But the biggest part of us winning the league is consistency and that is the most difficult part for a younger player to get. Some of them, like Lamine Yamal, it isn’t a problem!”
Liverpool.com says: Yamal is so good it is almost difficult to comprehend. Comparisons to Messi are inevitable and whether they are fair or not remains to be seen. If he wants to play at Anfield regularly, the Reds will need a Salah successor at some point…
