Lamine Yamal

[clyde21]

Deserves his own thread, right?

What are we talking about here...next Messi/CR7?

[KG Leonard]

Close to Messi level is potentially there, i dont think anyone will reach Goat Messi.

Problem is he plays for a joke Barcelona management like Laporta. Can they build a team around him even?

[-Luke-]

Spain vs. Portugal final is crazy. When Yamal was born, CR was 22 1/2 years old, had already played in 150 pro league matches and around 50 national team matches.

[magik9113]

He is, in my opinion, on track to be better than Messi, whatever that means. Injuries and death are the only thing that can stop him now.

[El Turco]

Without a doubt the greatest teenager ever. Too early for Messi talk, sometimes players level off or crater unexpectedly.

[clyde21]

He is, in my opinion, on track to be better than Messi, whatever that means. Injuries and death are the only thing that can stop him now.

do you mean that at 17 he is better than at what Messi was at 17, or trajectory speaking? that's a wild take lol

[Baphomet]

He's an incredible prospect and one of the best teenage players I've ever seen. Wayne Rooney, R9 and Messi are probably the other best players in that age bracket, off the top of my head. There's also Pele and El Diego, but I'm not old enough to have seen them play at that age.

But yeah, just by law of averages, it's very unlikely he ends up on a Messi/CR7 level trajectory. He will almost certainly become an elite generational player, hoping that injuries will be a non-factor, and it would be pretty great if he does bloom into that level of player. I wouldn't want to put those kinds of expectations on him, though. Just see how he develops for now and appreciate his quality, without need for comparisons. He plays like absolute silk with real flair and poise, he gets to his spots effortlessly, which is incredibly refreshing in what fans have termed as the "robot era" of football.

[magik9113]

He is, in my opinion, on track to be better than Messi, whatever that means. Injuries and death are the only thing that can stop him now.

do you mean that at 17 he is better than at what Messi was at 17, or trajectory speaking? that's a wild take lol

Both

[KG Leonard]

He is, in my opinion, on track to be better than Messi, whatever that means. Injuries and death are the only thing that can stop him now.

do you mean that at 17 he is better than at what Messi was at 17, or trajectory speaking? that's a wild take lol

Who cares how good he is at 17, Messi was the best in the world from 20 years + a decade and a half.

Owen, Rooney would be Messi level of it was about best 18 year old, Messi barely played for Barca at that age.

[magik9113]

He is, in my opinion, on track to be better than Messi, whatever that means. Injuries and death are the only thing that can stop him now.

do you mean that at 17 he is better than at what Messi was at 17, or trajectory speaking? that's a wild take lol

Who cares how good he is at 17, Messi was the best in the world from 20 years + a decade and a half.

Owen, Rooney would be Messi level of it was about best 18 year old, Messi barely played for Barca at that age.

I care how good he is at 17 when he’s consistently the best player on the field and was a superstar at 17 when he won the euro. We can’t act like this is normal.
Obviously Messi and Ronaldo have been at it for decades but I’m not going to fault the kid because he hasn’t even been alive for decades. But only time will tell

[KG Leonard]

do you mean that at 17 he is better than at what Messi was at 17, or trajectory speaking? that's a wild take lol

Who cares how good he is at 17, Messi was the best in the world from 20 years + a decade and a half.

Owen, Rooney would be Messi level of it was about best 18 year old, Messi barely played for Barca at that age.

I care how good he is at 17 when he’s consistently the best player on the field and was a superstar at 17 when he won the euro. We can’t act like this is normal.
Obviously Messi and Ronaldo have been at it for decades but I’m not going to fault the kid because he hasn’t even been alive for decades. But only time will tell

Yeah it is impressive, very mature level to be the best in big games at his age. The important part is not losing the level and showing more sheer dominance after he is fully grown like say 22 year old.
Historically if you dont win World Cup at 17, scoring all the goals like Pele, being best at that age isn't what Yamal's legacy will be. I don't expect him to be a Messi type end dominate decades but show that he is clearly the best player in the world. He isn't that so far.

[Foye]

He is better than both Messi and Ronaldo were at age 17.
However, the comparison really shouldn't be made.
Messi and Ronaldo had crazy high peaks and 20+ years longevity.

For the moment we can regard him as the best talent of his generation.
A lot can change in just a few years, though. Often the talents that are very good at a very young age get beat up, injured and their body is done by mid 20.