Benfica legend lavishes praise on Barcelona sensation – ‘I think he will be king’ | OneFootball

Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal has only gone on and broken unthinkable records this season and is already one of, if not the best player in the sport.

The latest record he broke was in the first leg of the semifinal against Inter Milan where he scored to break the record of Antonio Simoes who was the youngest ever goalscorer in a European Cup semi-final at 18 years and 3 months.

Yamal’s goal at 17 years and nine months broke that record by a landslide and can only be called deserved given the season and impact he has been having.

Benfica legend praises Yamal

Speaking to the media in the aftermath of Barcelona’s heartbreak in Europe, the Benfica legend gave his two cents on the youngster who broke his record and called him a gift to the game.

“Well, there is something with which he came into the world… a gift. That gift could have appeared in another country, in another city, in another academy or any club,” he said.

“But, first of all, there is some satisfaction because it belongs to a great academy of a great club: Barcelona.”

Elaborating on the other factors that have helped Yamal make his meteoric rise to the top, Simoes said,

“The size of the club quickly projected it to the whole world. And God our Lord gave him that gift. I am fully convinced that, in the coming years, he will be the best,” he added.

He also went on to add that he simply saw no competition for Yamal and that the youngster was on a level of his own.

“I don’t see in any other young person, from any other club or any other football, a talent as enriching as this boy’s. If he continues like this and continues to grow, I am convinced that it will be the best of all in the coming years.”

He was then asked if Lamine was better than Lionel Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo at the age that he currently is, to which he said,

“First of all, I think that in terms of the gift, talent, and the “art in motion” that is football, this boy looks much more like Messi than Cristiano Ronaldo,” he began.

“Secondly, we must recognize that Cristiano Ronaldo is the reflection of a lot of work – and we respect that deeply – a clear demonstration that, with effort, one can reach the stars,” he added.

Earning huge praise. (Photo by Fran Santiago/Getty Images)

Elaborating on where Lamine fit in between the two legends of the game, the Benfica legend said,

“Instead, this young man from Barcelona is the proof and confirmation that there are people to whom God gives a natural gift.”

“He was born with that gift, and it will be from there that he will build his career. Of course, he will have to work, yes, but he won’t need to do it as much as Cristiano Ronaldo did,” he added.

He was insistent, however, that it was wrong to paint the Barcelona teenager as the new Messi.

“No two people are the same. That doesn’t exist. There are similar people, there are people whose personality has something of the same.”

“When we go to the arts field, we always find someone who did it before, and then someone who does it after what he did before appears,” he added.

Praising Yamal for all his brilliance and the magic he brings to the field in every game, the veteran player said,

“This boy has de facto talent, art, and relationship with two things: first the ball and then the game, he has both. Having only a relationship with the ball is not enough. That’s not enough.”

“Although a player’s relationship with the ball is not the best in the world if he has the specific intelligence to form with the game, he is of great elevation, then he is a great player. And he has both. He has the ball and he has the game,” he added.

Finally, he spoke on how Lamine being left-footed only added to his advantage over others.

“On top of that, he has something else that helps a lot, and I say it from my own experience: he is left-handed, and that helps a lot.”

Concluding his segment on the Barcelona phenom, Simoes called Yamal the future ‘king’ of football.

“And then this boy, I think he’s going to be the king. The king is coming. The other two kings are finishing. And fortunately, there won’t be any empty space. We already have a successor.”

“Records are only to be broken, if not, imagine what it is that I have this record 63 years ago… it doesn’t make any sense. Don’t tell me I can’t see the record beaten,” he added, urging Yamal to go on and break more records.

Source: Mundo Deportivo