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Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal Wins The Kopa Trophy
Barcelona’s teenage sensation, Lamine Yamal, lifted the Kopa Trophy at Monday night’s Ballon d’Or ceremony, signifying his status as the best male player in the world under the age of 21.
The 17-year-old had a standout season with Barcelona in 2023/24, becoming a regular in the first team while also maintaining strong academic performance.
He scored five goals in the top flight and provided seven assists, participating in all but one of the matches last season.
Yamal has secured the Kopa Trophy, adding to his impressive collection of achievements in football. He is now recognized as the youngest player to score for Spain, the youngest scorer in La Liga history, the youngest player to win a European Championship, and the youngest-ever winner of this prestigious award.
Former Barcelona boss, Xavi Hernandez, was always reluctant to compare the club’s latest prodigy with their greatest ever player, but he did admit that “there are flashes of Lionel Messi” in Yamal.
Lionel Messi had to wait until he was 34 before winning his first senior title in international football.
Yamal ticked that box one day after turning 17 over the summer. The fleet-footed forward was the face of Spain’s new-look side at Euro 2024, leading the tournament winners in assists, shots, chances created and dribbles attempted.
Yamal only scored once at the Euros, but it was a memorable strike. After he was publicly challenged by France midfielder Adrien Rabiot, the Spanish forward got his revenge when the nations clashed in the semi-finals.
Halfway through the first half of an engrossing contest, Yamal came face-to-face with Rabiot, jinked onto his left foot, and bent a stunning effort beyond the dive of Mike Maignan.
Spain boss Luis de la Fuente hailed Yamal as “one of those players touched by God’s magic wand”. The jury of former Ballon d’Or winners agreed.
Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi, who bunked up with Yamal at the club’s academy accommodation throughout last season, was one of the nine other nominees for this year’s Kopa Trophy.
Yamal outperformed Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho and Kobbie Mainoo, further solidifying his Clasico bragging rights by surpassing Real Madrid’s Arda Guler as well.
In the brief history of the award, which was first introduced in 2018, Barcelona has produced three of the six winners. Gavi received the prize in 2022, following his compatriot and teammate Pedri, who was honored the previous year.
Jude Bellingham was the most recent recipient and progressed to become one of the favorites for this year’s senior Ballon d’Or. Given Yamal’s electric start to the current campaign, he will likely follow a similar trajectory.
