1. A minute in the life of Lamine Yamal is long enough. Like Juanito used to say in Italian (back in the 1980s, referring to Real Madrid’s incredible comebacks) “90 minutes at the Bernabeu is a long time” : it can be stretched into a lifetime.

At eighteen, a minute is a big moment, let alone a match.

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Yamal only stood out in the early match against PSG. Photo: MD

From the first minute in Montjuic, when the ball touched his feet, Lamine Yamal did everything necessary to win the 2026 Ballon d'Or (as he has repeatedly stated), even without Ousmane Dembele on the pitch.

He started with the energy of the chosen one, a Zinedine Zidane-style compass spin to eliminate three opponents. But after half an hour, the light faded, leaving a pale void for the rest.

Hansi Flick repeatedly reminded Lamine to “focus on working harder” . He repeated that publicly right before the PSG match in the Champions League.

Part of the effort is to not focus on the questions the press constantly throws at Flick.

Like whether Yamal is the most decisive player in European football ; or the best player.

But how to concentrate when all the side stories keep coming? There's talk of gold chains, sunglasses, holidays in Monaco, romance with the older Nicki Nicole.

When a groin injury kept him out for a month, Flick and Barca blamed Luis de la Fuente – Spain coach – as if Yamal’s career was a mirror without a scratch.

Few would dare point out that the image of a “teenage rock star” could also overshadow this young player.

2. Yamal's life is so transparent that it's exposed. Today the audience knows he's in love, the next day the press clearly shows the time he's out due to injury.

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Lamine Yamal was locked down by Nuno Mendes. Photo: EFE

All of this makes the 18-year-old boy the center of noisy stories outside of football, and then when he steps onto the field, his concentration is stretched.

In Montjuic, Lamine was only present for the first 30 minutes, then disappeared as if the rest of the match had nothing to do with him. He even received a yellow card at the end of the match.

It was no coincidence that Nuno Mendes – who directly marked Yamal – was chosen as the best player of the match.

Mendes evaporated Lamine, leaving Pedri and Vitinha as the names that remain in memory.

This confrontation is not unfamiliar: in the Nations League final, when Portugal drew 2-2 with Spain and then won 5-3 in the penalty shootout, Mendes also blocked any space that Yamal tried to create.

In both encounters, the Portuguese defender won both times against the winger hailed as “the future of European football”.

It was also Mendes' victory last summer in Germany that made Yamal lose to Dembele in the 2025 Ballon d'Or vote.

3. Maybe to the eyes of an older person, Yamal looks like a distracted person. But being distracted does not mean losing charm.

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Yamal needs to make more efforts and stay away from the noise outside of football. Photo: MD

The problem is that the pitch and his personal life collide constantly, causing any dribble to be held back by off-pitch drama – something that Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have been plagued with at the time. Talent is obvious, but persistence is key.

In Montjuic, Lamine Yamal only really existed in the first half hour. The rest belonged to Mendes, Pedri, Vitinha.

While still recovering from his injury, Lamine Yamal has circled the date of the match with PSG: he aims to return to optimal condition, and help Barca defeat the champions.

The defeat at Montjiuc helped the 18-year-old, with his Ballon d'Or dream, understand Hansi Flick's advice better: he needs to focus on working harder. That is the way for him to continue to maintain and develop his natural talent.

Lamine Yamal statistics in the match Barca 1-2 PSG:

Match statistics

Efficiency

Number of passes

42.0

Pass accuracy rate (%)

71.4%

Percentage of accurate passes on the opponent's field (%)

70.4%

Number of long passes

7.0

Number of short passes

35.0

Number of wins in head-to-head matches

8.0

Number of head-to-head losses

4.0

Number of air victories

0.0

Number of lost air battles

0.0

Goal

0.0

Shot on target

0.0

Shot out

3.0

Blocked shot

1.0

Cross the ball successfully

1.0

Cross failed

1.0

Assist

0.0

Opportunities created

2.0

Offside

0.0

Number of fouls

3.0

Number of fouls

1.0

Yellow card

1.0

Red card

0.0

“90 minutes at the Bernabeu is very long”

The legendary quote from Juanito – a former Real Madrid striker in the 1980s – was coined before a European Cup match, when he warned that any advantage against Real would be fragile. “Noventa minuti en el Bernabéu son molto longo” (a mix of Spanish and Italian) has become the “truth” of the Champions League: 90 minutes at the Bernabéu is long enough for Real Madrid to turn any fate around.

During Carlo Ancelotti's tenure - winning the championship in 2022 and 2024 - every time "Los Blancos" made a spectacular comeback, from PSG, Chelsea to Man City, the Spanish press repeated this saying like an immortal prophecy.

Source: https://vietnamnet.vn/barca-thua-psg-o-cup-c1-lamine-yamal-lac-buoc-giua-on-ao-2448369.html