Football fans over the last decade have been used to seeing Cristiano Ronaldo squaring up against Lionel Messi in El Clasico. With the passage of time, the legends of the game have settled in Saudi Arabia and the United States, respectively, and a new age rivalry has taken centre stage with Sunday's clash all about Yamal versus Kylian Mbappe, the two global superstars of their generation. Remarkably, the pair have already met eight times across club and international competitions. Yamal has won seven of those encounters, while Mbappé’s teams have managed victory just once. Among their most memorable battles was Barcelona’s 5–2 demolition of Real Madrid in the Supercopa de España, followed by a 3–2 Copa del Rey triumph. However, statistically, Mbappe has outscored him in those duels with eight goals to six. Even Mbappe's compatriot, Zinedine Zidane, couldn’t help but shower Yamal with praise.
"Regardless of position, one player who excites me when he touches the ball is Lamine Yamal," he said. "Against Inter last year in the Champions League at San Siro, he did it all on his own. Then I think of Vitinha or Joao Neves. They never lose the ball. When you see him (Yamal) play, for example, the semi-final against Inter Milan. In the second half… I’ve never seen anything like it in my life. It’s enough to see someone who is so dominant on the pitch. It’s fabulous to see him like that. So we all enjoy ourselves and that’s why, for all these young people, Lamine is the one to watch."
As the dust settles from Yamal’s off-field fireworks, the focus now shifts to the real on-field battle. Barcelona enter the game two points behind Real Madrid after nine matchdays, knowing that a win could propel them back to the top spot.
