Look of love! Lamine Yamal shares kisses & cuddles with rap star girlfriend Nicki Nicole - with Barcelona wonderkid enjoying romantic helicopter ride during injury-enforced break

Yamal first picked up a knock when away with the Spain national team in September. He has taken in just two appearances for Barca since then, with the Liga giants less than impressed at seeing one of their most prized assets suffer a setback while on 2026 World Cup qualifying duty.

There is, however, little that they can do about that now, with Yamal able to rest during the latest break in club action. He has not linked up with the Spain squad for more fixtures en route to next summer’s World Cup - an event that many are expecting him to illuminate on the back of claiming a runner-up finish in the 2025 Ballon d’Or.

Yamal is not dwelling on his failure to land a Golden Ball, with many more opportunities to come there, and appears relaxed about his fitness issues. He has been all smiles after reuniting with Nicole. The couple first got together around the time of Yamal’s 18th birthday, with several special guests attending his celebrations. They have found time in their hectic schedules to link up on a regular basis since then - with Nicole sticking around in Catalunya. The Argentine musician has now teamed up with Yamal for a romantic break.

A video has been shared of the pair taking a helicopter ride over the Croatian coast, with tiny islands and clear blue sea spotted below them. Yamal had a smile on his face at the time, but may not have enjoyed the flight as much as he was putting on. When resharing Nicole’s clip on his own Instagram page, he made a point of including dizzy and crying emojis - suggesting that he was not entirely comfortable being whizzed around on a chopper.

Yamal and Nicole seem happy to keep giving fans a behind-the-scenes look at their private lives. The Barcelona superstar included a couple of images showing him getting cosy with Nicole and puckering up as they unwind away from the stresses of their respective day jobs.

It remains to be seen when Yamal will be cleared to make his return for Barca. No risks will be taken on his fitness, given how important he has become to the collective cause. The Blaugrana are, however, aware that a Clasico clash with arch-rivals Real Madrid is fast approaching.

Barcelona are due at Santiago Bernabeu on October 26. Quizzed on whether Yamal will be ready for that crunch clash, Hansi Flick has said of the teenager’s condition: "It’s better but it’s not good. This is the situation with Lamine. With this injury, it’s not so easy to know [when he will return]. It’s not easy to say, ‘OK he can play in two, three or four weeks...' or if he’s able to play the Clásico. This is not possible. We have to wait. We must manage his load. He trains with the recovery team and [will spend] the next weeks with them. We go step by step. We have to see how the evolution is."

While Barca boss Flick is giving little away, reports in Spain suggest that Yamal will be ready to line up against Real. According to Marca, "not only is there confidence Yamal will be back in time for El Clasico, but there is even a belief he could return earlier".

Reigning La Liga champions Barca - who sit second in the table at present, two points behind old adversaries from Madrid - will return to action on October 18 when playing host to Catalan neighbours Girona. They then have a Champions League date with Olympiacos to come on October 21, before attention turns to all things Clasico.