'They've given me a bad card!' - Lamine Yamal not happy with EA SPORTS FC 25 rating as Barcelona wonderkid explains what needs to change

Individual scores for the popular simulation game are in the process of being rolled out ahead of a full release on September 27. The highest-rated players are Manchester City stars Erling Haaland and Rodri, new Real Madrid ‘Galactico’ Kylian Mbappe and Ballon d’Or Feminin winner Aitana Bonmati – who all come in at 91.

Yamal, who helped Spain to Euro 2024 glory the day after his 17th birthday, has only been given a score of 81. That places him some way down the list of best young players – behind the likes of Jude Bellingham, Jamal Musiala, Rodrygo, Cole Palmer and international team-mate Nico Williams.

Yamal has told El Hormiguero when asked if he plays virtual games: “I don't play fantasy because my friends are lazy and play for a week and then quit. This year I'm already playing FIFA, but they've given me a very bad card, only an 81. I would increase my pace, my dribbling…”

Yamal can expect his rating to increase rapidly, given his meteoric rise, and he is already a contender for the prestigious Ballon d’Or. He does, however, concede that he is not ready to land that prize just yet, adding on finding out that he is on the 30-man list of candidates for 2024: “We were in the elevator with Nico Williams, and first he got nominated, then I did. They congratulated us in the dressing room, but I don’t think I have a chance of winning the Ballon d’Or.”

For now, Yamal is focused on doing his best for Barcelona and Spain. His performances to date are seeing expectation and pressure lumped onto his young shoulders, but the hottest of prospects has cleared every hurdle placed in his path so far.