Andres Iniesta has described what Lamine Yamal is achieving at the age of 19 as “not normal”, saying the Barcelona forward’s ambition and natural ability point to an outstanding future.
The Barcelona and Spain legend made the comments in an interview with Mundo Deportivo, where he praised the level Yamal has already reached despite his age.
“What Yamal is doing is not normal, because if it were normal, there would be more players capable of doing the same thing,” Iniesta said.
He added: “It is not normal, and the beautiful and important thing about it is the ambition he has, as well as his spontaneity. If you stop to think about what awaits him at this age, his future looks extremely bright.”
Iniesta was also asked whether signing Rodri could give Barcelona the extra quality needed to challenge for European honours.
“Would signing Rodri give Barcelona a step up to win in Europe? Yes, definitely,” he said. “Having a player like Rodri undoubtedly raises the team’s level.”
He continued: “A player of Rodri’s level, with the importance he has within the team and his understanding of the game, would certainly give Barcelona another step up in quality.”
The former Barcelona midfielder was then asked which current player most resembles him as a coach, particularly among midfielders in world football.
Iniesta said he preferred to highlight several players already at Barcelona rather than select only one.
“I really like the players we have at Barcelona,” he said. “I like Pedri a lot in fact, I adore him but I also like Fermin Lopez a lot. I like Dani Olmo a lot as well, and Gavi.”
He concluded: “I think that instead of saying this player or that player is the closest, you can say that these players possess the best qualities possible.
“Or at least, in my view, when you ask me what I like a footballer to be, these three, for example, represent exactly the type of player I admire.”
