Lamine Yamal spoke candidly at his press conference ahead of Barcelona’s Champions League opener against Dutch side Feyenoord tomorrow. The academy graduate was asked about his team’s chances of winning the biggest title in European football, the Ballon d’Or, his newly appointed role as captain—he is fifth in the club’s captaincy hierarchy—José Mourinho’s complaints about refereeing following Real Madrid’s first defeat of the season away to Real Betis, and his mood after looking frustrated when he was substituted against Elche.
Lamine admitted that “there is no greater motivation than the fact that the Champions League is the title you still have left to win. It is the competition we still have to win. We have great players like Rodri, Gordon and Adeyemi, and we are going to try.”
The Rocafonda-born winger said that “it is a privilege to be Barça captain at 19. I am very grateful to my teammates, and it makes me more responsible. Even though I am 19, I will try to give my best for the team.”
Asked whether he deserves the Ballon d’Or, he was clear:
“The first thing is that it does not depend on me; it depends on you [the media]. The work we have done with the team and the national team has been incredible and, if it happens, the first thing I will do is be grateful to my team and my national team. I think I have a lot of chances, but we’ll see.”
Along the same lines, he insisted that he would not launch a personal campaign to win the award for the world’s best player.
“I don’t think I need to. I’m not thinking about that. I’m proud of my team and my national team. We are world champions and I couldn’t ask for anything more. It is your job; I’m not going to start begging for anything.”
The previous day, Mbappé had listed his own credentials for winning the Ballon d’Or, referring to his status as the World Cup’s all-time top scorer, although at the most recent tournament this summer he finished fourth with France.
Asked about Dembélé’s Ballon d’Or favourites, after the Frenchman did not include him among his picks, Lamine responded jokingly:
“Who didn’t put me in the top three? Dembélé? He’s Kylian’s friend, right? I’m very happy. The times I’ve played against the two of them together, I must have annoyed them for some reason, but I get along very well with Ousmane.”
The last time he faced the two French stars was in the World Cup semi-final, when Spain eliminated France 2-0. In 2024, Spain also knocked them out in the European Championship semi-final, with Lamine scoring a stunning goal into the top corner.
Lamine was asked whether he believes he needs to contribute to the press immediately after losing possession despite being such a major attacking star. His answer would surely have pleased Hansi Flick:
“You only have to look at the teams that have won titles recently. We saw PSG—if you don’t run, every team will beat you. For the team, if we want to win, we have to run. If you don’t run, you are going to lose.”
After reiterating that winning the Champions League is his biggest challenge, he explained why he appeared frustrated when he was substituted against Elche on the opening day of the league season.
“I don’t know. It depends on how I feel on the day. The only reason at Elche was that it was extremely hot. I was tired, you made forty thousand stories about it, but the only thing was that it was 40 degrees.”
Regarding his role models as captains, Lamine named “Rapha, Pedri, Eric, Frenkie... What I have learned from them is to always look for what is best for the team.”
The academy graduate said he was “very happy.”
“I don’t know why there is so much talk about me. I’ve just won a World Cup, had the holiday of my life... I don’t know why there is so much talk. This is the happiest moment of my life.”
Lamine also insisted that he has no fear of being left on the bench.
“I’m not afraid of being a substitute. We have enough players in the squad if the coach decides that one day.”
Finally, he said that managing his fame at just 19 is “easy.”
“It’s easy to manage. I’m in a dressing room with great players who have achieved more than I have in football. I train and then go home to my family, which keeps my feet on the ground.”