Barcelona star Lamine Yamal overcame a late injury concern during the warm-up to be included in the starting lineup for their Champions League semifinal first leg clash against Inter.
During the pre-match warm-up at the Olympic Stadium, Yamal seemed to slip while taking a shot, leading him to leave the field for the locker room ahead of his teammates. TV footage showed the 17-year-old holding his left groin or thigh, raising concerns about his fitness with only about 15 minutes remaining until kickoff.
Despite the worry, Yamal did start the match, marking his 100th appearance for Barcelona at the remarkably young age of 17, nearly three months before his 18th birthday. As one of this season`s standout wingers in European football, significant pressure will be on him and Raphinha, especially with Robert Lewandowski still sidelined. Ferran Torres again fills the central attacking role. The starting eleven for Barcelona was the same as the one that defeated Real Madrid in the Copa del Rey final just days earlier.
Any doubts about whether the pressure of a first Champions League semifinal would affect Yamal were dismissed on Tuesday. Speaking at the pre-match press conference before the Inter match, the teenager confidently stated:
Fear while playing the game? I left all my fears in the park of my neighbourhood, back in Mataro, a while ago.
Yamal is among several La Masia graduates in the semifinal starting lineup tonight. Regarding his aspirations of winning the Champions League trophy, he commented:
We want Barca to win and to be among the best in business. You can see that feeling in our team, it`s a dream for us and it has a lot to do with our performance this season. We remember when the club won the Champions League in 2015 and we don`t only play because that`s our job — we also feel the colours of this football club.
Dominic Ashworth