Barcelona head coach Hansi Flick has praised 19-year-old winger Lamine Yamal, saying: “Yamal can decide the outcome of any match on his own.”
Yamal has scored four goals in four appearances for Barcelona in the Spanish league this season, underlining his importance to Flick’s side at the beginning of the campaign.
The teenager’s performances have attracted particular attention ahead of Barcelona’s opening fixture in the league phase of the Champions League. Barcelona will host Feyenoord on 9 September, with kick-off scheduled for 19:45 Moscow time.
Flick’s assessment places Yamal at the centre of Barcelona’s attacking threat as the club prepares to begin its European campaign. The manager believes the winger possesses the individual quality to influence a match without relying entirely on his team-mates.
Yamal has featured in all four of Barcelona’s Spanish league matches this season and has found the net in each of them, taking his total to four goals. Those figures form the statistical background to Flick’s positive comments about the player’s ability to determine matches alone.
Barcelona’s meeting with Feyenoord will be played at the Catalan club’s home ground and will be their first match in this season’s Champions League league phase. The fixture gives Yamal another opportunity to demonstrate the qualities highlighted by Flick on one of European football’s biggest stages.
Feyenoord will provide the opposition in the opening round of the competition’s league phase. The match is scheduled for 9 September, and the referee is due to signal the start at 19:45 Moscow time.
For Flick, the immediate focus is therefore on Barcelona’s first Champions League assignment, while Yamal enters the match having already scored four times in the domestic league. The head coach’s comments reflect the confidence he has in the winger’s ability to produce a decisive moment and change the course of a game by himself.
Yamal’s four goals in four Spanish league appearances are the only statistics provided about his involvement this season, but they offer a clear indication of the impact he has made so far. Flick’s remarks suggest Barcelona will look to that influence again when Feyenoord visit on 9 September.
The home match will open Barcelona’s European schedule in the league phase, with Yamal’s form and the manager’s strong endorsement adding interest to the contest.