Gary Lineker never thought we'd see another player like Lionel Messi - until Lamine Yamal came along. "Just watching him, he makes it look so easy to beat a player. He goes past them almost as if they're invisible, like they're not there," the ex-England international enthused on the 'Stick to Football' podcast the morning after Barcelona's thrilling 3-3 draw with Inter on April 30.

Lamine Yamal went out of his way to hype up his return to the Barcelona line-up for Wednesday night's Champions League clash with Paris Saint-Germain at the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys. The 18-year-old posted a clip on his Instagram account from the movie 'The Devil's Advocate' in which Al Pacino's character, John Milton, discusses the effects of pressure: "Some people, you squeeze 'em, they focus; others fold. Can you summon your talent at will? Can you deliver on a deadline? Can you sleep at night?"

The club versus country row between Barcelona and Spain has escalated after Luis de la Fuente called up Lamine Yamal for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers. The Spain boss fired back at Hansi Flick's complaints about player welfare, expressing surprise at the Barca manager's comments and defending his decision to include the teenager.

Wednesday's Champions League clash between Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain should have immediately seen the top two players in the 2025 Ballon d'Or vote squaring off against one another. However, while Lamine Yamal has returned to full fitness just in time for the game at Montjuic, Ousmane Dembele will remain sidelined for at least another couple of weeks.

Barcelona are reportedly planning to block Lamine Yamal from being called up by Spain for their upcoming World Cup qualifiers against Georgia and Bulgaria as the fallout from the forward’s recent groin injury continues. The Blaugrana were incensed after discovering the 18-year-old aggravated the issue by taking painkillers to play in his country’s international double header earlier this month.