Teenage Barcelona forward Lamine Yamal said he would not compare himself to Lionel Messi – and then put in a performance a 17-year-old Messi could only have dreamed of in one of the all-time great Champions League semi-final ties.
It led to him being called “a genius”, “a cheat code” and “a phenomenal talent”.
Barca and Inter Milan ended up drawing 3-3 in their epic first-leg encounter, with visiting full-back Denzel Dumfries involved in all three Inter goals, scoring twice, and being named man of the match.
But most of the global headlines will focus on the 17-year-old Yamal, who scored his 22nd goal on his landmark 100th Barcelona game.
He put on a masterclass, especially in the first half to inspire a superb comeback after Inter had led 2-0 by the 21st minute.
Yamal claimed a classy Champions League semi-final goal to go with one in the Euro 2024 last four last summer. Already one of the best players in the world – and before he even turns 18.
“I don’t think I have seen a 45 minutes like from one individual before in my life. It is unbelievable,” said TNT Sports pundit Ally McCoist as the players walked off the pitch at half-time.
Inter Milan boss Simone Inzaghi gave Yamal the highest of praise afterwards.
“Lamine is the kind of talent that comes along every 50 years, and to see him up close really impressed me,” he said.
“He caused us huge problems because we were supposed to double up on him and it wasn’t enough.”
Barca boss Hansi Flick said: “He’s special, he’s a genius. In the big matches, he shows up.
“If it only comes every 50 years like Simone said, I’m glad it’s for Barcelona.”
BBC pundit Stephen Warnock called him “a future Ballon d’Or winner”.
One of the games of the season has everyone excited about the second leg at the San Siro in Milan next week, a change of pace from Paris St-Germain’s hard-fought 1-0 win at Arsenal the day before.
