Lamine Yamal is officially back to his best. After enduring a difficult period where the joy seemed to have vanished from his game, the teenage sensation exploded into life at the weekend, bagging a sensational hat-trick in Barcelona's 4-1 demolition of Villarreal. It was a performance that not only reaffirmed his status as the crown jewel of La Masia but also served as the perfect springboard for what many consider to be an impossible task lying ahead in the Copa del Rey.
Barcelona winger Raphinha has sounded a defiant battle cry as the Catalan giants face the monumental task of overturning a four-goal deficit in the Copa del Rey. Following a bruising 4-0 defeat against Atlético Madrid at the Metropolitano in the first leg of the semi-finals, many have written off the Blaugrana's chances of defending their domestic cup crown. However, the Brazilian international remains steadfast in his belief that Camp Nou could witness one of the competition's greatest-ever turnarounds.
Uncle Ben's eternally wise 'with great power comes great responsibility' warning to Peter Parker, aka Spiderman, is also applicable to Lamine Yamal, a real-life superhuman still at the beginning of his career. At the tender age of 18, the Barcelona wonderkid has already achieved more than most players dream of, and is held up as the beacon of excellence underpinning the Blaugrana's bid for another era of domestic and European success.
Keylor Navas has played with the greatest players of the modern era, from Cristiano Ronaldo to Lionel Messi. However, the legendary Costa Rican goalkeeper has snubbed both icons when naming the most talented teammate he has ever witnessed. Reflecting on his career, the three-time Champions League winner explained why a Brazilian superstar left the biggest impression on him during their time together in Paris.
One regular weekend of refereeing, that's all we ask for. Will never happen. At least not in the current climate - because if the fourth round of the FA Cup taught us anything, it's that the absence of VAR definitely doesn't mean an absence of controversy. The first half of the Aston Villa-Newcastle game alone made a compelling case for the continued use of technology for offside decisions and penalty claims.
Lionel Scaloni's plan to stop Lamine Yamal in La Finalissima has been revealed as Spain gear up to take on Argentina in Qatar. The European champions will take on the Copa America winners in Qatar next month in the pre-World Cup meeting in the national team equivalent of the now-defunct Intercontinental Cup. The game will see the Barcelona wonderkid come up against Lionel Messi for the first time.
Barcelona's players shared their concerns with manager Hansi Flick about his tactics in the wake of their 4-0 thrashing by Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey. The result leaves the Blaugrana with a mountain to climb ahead of the second leg of the tie at Camp Nou in March, and the players have called on the manager to make changes to his system.
Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal was ridiculed by Diego Simeone during the Blaugrana’s disastrous Copa del Rey defeat to Atletico Madrid. Hansi Flick’s side, who sit top of the Liga table, found themselves four goals down by half-time in the first leg of an epic cup clash at Riyadh Air Metropolitano. Simeone took great delight in reminding Yamal of the scoreline.
Barcelona were thumped 4-0 by Atletico Madrid in the first leg of their Copa del Rey semi-final on Thursday, as Diego Simeone's side ran riot against a truly dismal Blaugrana side. Hansi Flick's high line was exposed routinely and ruthlessly throughout a night that the Metropolitano faithful could barely believe.
The Metropolitano pitch has become a major talking point ahead of Atletico Madrid's Copa del Rey semi-final first leg against Barcelona. "Honestly, it's not in good condition," Koke admitted after Sunday's home defeat to Real Betis. "We slip, the turf comes up. Clearly, we have to play better, so it's not an excuse, but we're expected to perform at a high level and we need a pitch of that same quality to be able to do so."
Diego Simeone has hailed the "different" qualities of Ademola Lookman after the Nigerian international marked his Atletico Madrid debut with a stunning strike. The former Atalanta star joined the Spanish giants in the final days of the January window and wasted no time making an impact during a 5-0 rout of Real Betis. Simeone believes the attacker offers a unique threat to his squad.
Barcelona secured safe passage through to the semi-finals of the Copa del Rey with a 2-1 win over Segunda Division outfit Albacete on Tuesday. The Catalan giants were made to wait until the 39th minute before Lamine Yamal opened the scoring, and Ronald Araujo later netted the second of the night, though Javi Moreno's strike set up a nervy ending to the encounter.
Barcelona stars were queuing up to praise goalkeeper Joan Garcia after his stoppage-time heroics saved the Catalan giants from a potential Copa del Rey disaster against Racing Santander. The Spanish champions scraped through to the quarter-finals with a 2-0 victory, but the scoreline masked a nervy evening where only the brilliance of their shot-stopper prevented them from suffering the same humiliating fate as arch-rivals Real Madrid.
Second-division side Albacete have issued an apology to Real Madrid and Vinicius Junior after their historic Copa del Rey victory was overshadowed by vile racist abuse. The club expressed their deep "shame" after a banana was thrown at the Brazilian star during the 3-2 shock, while "disgusting xenophobic chants" were also reported outside the Carlos Belmonte stadium.
Barcelona avoided a Copa del Rey upset thanks to second-half goals from Ferran Torres and Lamine Yamal in a 2-0 win. A day after bitter rivals Real Madrid were dumped out of the competition by second division side Albacete, Hansi Flick's men overcame a stern examination against similar opposition on Thursday. The cup holders were indebted to substitute Fermin Lopez as they reached the quarter-finals in battling fashion.
Real Madrid were woeful defensively, and despite goals from Franco Mastantuono and Gonzalo Garcia, succumbed to second division Albacete in the Copa Del Rey, losing 3-2 on Wednesday to get Alvaro Arbeloa's reign off to a forgettable start. Los Blancos had most of the ball throughout, but created few clear cut chances. The home side, meanwhile, were clinical - and good value for the win.
Kylian Mbappe played no part in Real Madrid’s first training session since taking the decision to part with head coach Xabi Alonso. He was relieved of his duties in the wake of a Spanish Super Cup final defeat to Barcelona, with the axe falling within 24 hours of that setback in Saudi Arabia being suffered. Reins have been passed to Alvaro Arbeloa on an interim basis, but he is not yet working with French superstar Mbappe.
Kylian Mbappe scored two and set up another as Real Madrid unconvincingly saw off Spanish third-tier side Talavera 3-2 to reach the last-16 of the Copa del Rey. The 26-year-old converted a penalty, forced the hosts into an own-goal, and scored a fortuitous long-range strike, but that nearly wasn't enough as the underdogs made it a tense finish with two late goals on Wednesday.
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