Barcelona Hold Their Breath as Lamine Yamal Suffers Injury Scare While on International Duty
Lamine Yamal was substituted during the final moments of Spain's World Cup qualifying triumph against Bulgaria on Thursday, though reports indicate that the Barcelona attacker has escaped any significant injury concerns.
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente continues to express his admiration for the teenage sensation. The prodigy "blessed by divine talent" reinforced his position among the globe's elite players with another brilliant performance for his country, setting up Mikel Merino's header to seal a 3–0 victory after contributing to the opening two strikes of the evening.
Bulgaria's struggling left-back Fabian Nürnberger, who competes at club level in Germany's second division with Darmstadt, predictably found it challenging to handle Yamal. Barcelona's skillful winger successfully dribbled past the 26-year-old defender on six separate occasions.
The match was already decided when Yamal uncomfortably exited the field in the 79th minute. Mundo Deportivo reports that the youngster is experiencing back discomfort and missed team practice on Friday. Nevertheless, the publication characterizes the problem as "minimal" and anticipates Yamal will be ready for Spain's challenging encounter in Türkiye on Sunday evening.
De la Fuente maintained an optimistic outlook following the match. "We could have extracted more encouraging takeaways, but everyone remained injury-free," he informed TVE. "It was a challenging encounter, and the upcoming fixture will be significantly improved."
This marked the first of Yamal's 22 international appearances earned as an adult, yet the exceptional talent already holds iconic status within his national squad. The relentless dribbler has netted six goals for his country while accumulating an additional 11 assists. Since De la Fuente assumed control of Spain in early 2023, no squad member has been involved in more goals than Yamal.
Considering such impressive productivity, La Roja have been understandably hesitant to exclude Yamal. He's unlikely to find any respite at Barcelona either. The Catalan club's manager Hansi Flick has previously stated: "I remind Lamine that champions never rest."
Barcelona can hardly manage without their star attacker in the upcoming period. The reigning La Liga titleholders resume play with Valencia visiting the renovated Camp Nou four days before journeying to Newcastle United's St James' Park for their opening Champions League match of the new season.