Afotimber Back when Lionel Messi was playing perhaps the best football ever seen, Lamine Yamal’s eyes were drawn elsewhere.
Barcelona’s new great hope has always been a fan of the team, and went to the Camp Nou as a child to watch his future club.
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Yamal’s haircut should give some clues as to who his favourite player is…Credit: AFPThere he saw club icons like Xavi, Luis Suarez and Andres Iniesta, but he remains a fanboy of someone else to this day.
When taking part in some quick-fire questions with Mundo Deportivo, Yamal was asked which player he’d want to be in another life and quickly replied: “Neymar.”
But when asked who the best athlete in the world is, the 17-year-old answered: “Messi”.
Yamal has previously explained his preference for the Brazilian over the Argentine, stating: “I was five years old when I saw him [Neymar] at Santos but seven years old when I saw him in person at FC Barcelona at the Camp Nou it was incredible to see him.
read more on lamine yamal”Yes, it’s true that Messi was there who was also incredible, but he was something totally different.
“Neymar has always been my idol. He’s a star, a football legend.”
When asked to explain his snub of his fellow La Masia graduate who most Barca fans consider the greatest of all time, Yamal chose to focus on Brazil’s all-time top scorer.
“He made me go see the games,” the teen added. “He made me have fun, it was a spectacle, it was nice to watch him play.
“I’ve always said that the best in history is Leo Messi, but the player I liked to watch was Neymar.”
Yamal regularly replicates Neymar on social media, copying his haircut and wearing his Santos shirt.
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Yamal got to pose with his idol on InstagramCredit: @lamineyamal
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And later posted a picture wearing his Santos shirtNeymar signed for Barca from Santos in 2013 and went on to form one of football’s greatest-ever attacking tridents alongside Messi and Suarez.
The trio won the 2015 Champions League and two LaLigas together before Neymar’s infamous 2017 move to Paris Saint-Germain.
The deal still stands as the most expensive in football history at £200m, and it destroyed Barca as they instantly splurged on new players who didn’t live up to their price tags.
However, even though Neymar’s time in France was largely deemed a failure as he failed to land the club their first Champions League and Ballon d’Or, Yamal still loved the player, even at Al Hilal.
The pair posed together at the Globe Soccer Awards in 2024, and Neymar commented on his prodigy.
“Lamine Yamal is a great player, a crack,” he said. “Obviously we share some similar characteristics in our style of play.
Outrageous fan footage shows Lamine Yamal’s ridiculous assist for Dani Olmo for Barcelona against Espanyol
“I think he has everything to become one of the biggest stars in world football.”
Yamal’s answer of Neymar wasn’t the only interesting one, though, as he was also asked for his favourite three players who don’t play for Barca.
Yamal responded: “[Jamal] Musiala, Neymar, Savinho.”
And when asked if he could sign one of them, he replied: “You want me to say Neymar… but no: Musiala, who has a contract.”
There was also a cheeky answer when he was asked to name his favourite city break, and he said Madrid, the place where he scored twice in a 4-0 demolition of Real in October.