Good morning, I’m Dan Gartland. I’m extremely ready for this New York heatwave to be over.
In today’s SI:AM:
🇪🇸 Spain’s 16-year-old phenom
⚾ The lawmaker on the mound
⛳ Rory addresses Pinehurst collapse
He still wears braces
Almost exactly a year ago, on July 8, 2023, 15-year-old Lamine Yamal scored a stunning goal from outside the box for Spain against France at the U-17 European Championship. On Tuesday, one year and one day after that goal, Yamal scored an equally impressive goal, also against France—this time for the senior national team in the Euro semifinals.
It was an audacious attempt on goal for any player, let alone one as young as Yamal playing in his first major international tournament. He received a pass well outside the 18-yard box and took a few dribbles before firing a curling shot from 25 yards out that soared over the outstretched hand of French keeper Mike Maignan and clipped the inside of the goalpost before hitting the back of the net. Yamal was peeling away to celebrate even before the ball crossed the goal line.
At 16 years, 362 days old, Yamal became the youngest player ever to score a goal at the men’s European Championship, more than a year younger than Switzerland’s Johan Vonlanthen, who was 18 years, 141 days old when he scored against France in 2004. (Yamal played on the right wing in Tuesday’s semifinal, in front of right back Jesús Navas, who at 38 is nearly six years older than Yamal’s father.) He was also named Man of the Match, becoming the youngest player to ever earn that honor in a UEFA game.
Yamal’s goal came in the 21st minute and brought Spain even with France after Randal Kolo Muani scored the first goal of the game in the ninth minute. Spain took the lead in the 25th minute on Dani Olmo’s goal and never looked back, clamping down to hold on for a 2–1 win and advance to Sunday’s final.
“We were in a difficult moment, you wouldn’t expect a goal so soon, I wanted to put it in where it went in and I’m very happy,” Yamal said after the game. “I try not to think too much, enjoy it and help the team and if it works out like this, I’m happy and content with the victory. I want to win, win and win. I’ll celebrate my birthday here in Germany with my team.”
Yamal won’t turn 17 until Saturday but he’s already established himself as an integral part of the Spanish national team. He’s started all but one of the team’s games at the Euros, with the lone exception being the group stage match against Albania, when Spain rested several starters. He now has a goal and three assists in Spain’s six games at the tournament. In the round of 16 game against Georgia, he was tied for the team lead with seven shot attempts.
Yamal’s story is incredible. It’s one thing to be named to the senior national team as a 16-year-old, but it’s something else entirely to become a key contributor for one of the best national sides in the world while you’re still wearing braces. It’s the kind of story that seems to have been destined by the soccer gods—and maybe it was. How else do you explain the photos of Yamal being bathed by none other than Lionel Messi as an infant in 2007?
Yamal is following in Messi’s footsteps as a teenage phenom at Barcelona. He made his professional debut in April 2023 with an eight-minute cameo at the end of a 4–0 blowout. This season, he appeared in all but one of Barça’s games, making 22 starts in 37 appearances. It would be foolish to suggest that he’s poised to have a career anything like Messi’s, but his performance at the Euros has shown that he’s ready to shed the wunderkind label and join the ranks of the world’s best—regardless of age.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as SI:AM | 16-Year-Old Lamine Yamal Leads Spain to Euro 2024 Final.
