Lamine Yamal is “on the way to being a legendary player”, according to Spain manager Luis de la Fuente, who praised the Barcelona forward after his team beat Czechia 3-1 in the Nations League on Saturday.
The victory in Oviedo kept La Roja at the top of Nations League Group A3 with a maximum nine points from three matches.
Yamal opened the scoring with a trademark left-footed finish from the right-hand side of the penalty area after combining with Barcelona team-mate Dani Olmo. Rodri added a second before half-time, giving Spain a comfortable advantage.
Czechia threatened to turn the match around after Jiri Slama pulled a goal back in the second half. Their hopes were ended when Ladislav Krejci was sent off, before Mikel Merino scored late to secure Spain’s victory.
Yamal has now scored 12 goals in his past nine matches for club and country. Four of those have come for Spain in the Nations League, while eight have been scored for Barcelona in all competitions. The only match in that run in which he has not found the net was Barcelona’s 3-1 LaLiga victory over Sevilla.
Asked whether Yamal’s output still surprised him, De la Fuente said: “He never ceases to amaze us all.
“He is so talented, there is much more to see of the best version of Lamine.
“He is growing by leaps and bounds. He is a reference for the national team, a player with great weight, and we have to celebrate him.”
The Spain manager was also asked about Yamal’s chances of winning the Ballon d’Or, with the ceremony in London taking place in just over three weeks.
“If he were the only Spaniard among the nominees, I would tell him that he is the best in the world,” De la Fuente said.
“He does everything well. If he is not the best because of competition with other Spaniards, he is one of the best. But he is on the way to being a legendary player.”
Yamal was replaced at half-time, along with Alex Baena, as De la Fuente managed his attacking options before Tuesday’s trip to Croatia.
Spain’s performance dropped significantly after the interval. They recorded five shots and an expected-goals figure of 0.75 in the second half, compared with 13 attempts and 1.35 expected goals before the break.
De la Fuente said the decision to withdraw Yamal was part of a wider plan to manage his workload rather than a special measure for the winger.
“We take care of Lamine exactly the same as the other players,” he said. “We do not make a distinction. We take care of everyone equally.
“We thought that the game would go in a different direction, but we wanted to take away some minutes from his load, so that he could stay in the best condition.”
