Lamine Yamal delivers a Messi-esque solo run in Barcelona vs Alaves | OneFootball

For many people, and especially Barcelona fans, the great Lionel Messi was their introduction to the wonders of football. The Argentinian was a player who showcased exactly what the peak of footballing talent could look like. From his creativity to his finishing, every single detail about the Barcelona legend’s game was simply iconic.

However, perhaps his mesmerizing dribbling was the most iconic thing about him. Whenever he used to go on his trademark solo runs with the ball at his feet, it would almost feel like it was glued to him and there was simply no way the opposition’s defenders could take it off him.

Over the years, as he continued to do it more often, the ability to run past several players became synonymous with the Barcelona icon. Yet, it was understood by many that such a talent would be near impossible to encounter again and his abilities should be enjoyed for as long as possible.

While finding a new Messi and putting that pressure on someone is still an immense task, there is a certain player who continues to walk in his footsteps at Barcelona. Lamine Yamal, aged just 17, is now seen as the rightful heir to the throne that the Argentine left behind at the club.

However, if his achievements and accolades were not enough to prove that, he has gone on to directly imitate the World Cup winner’s iconic dribbling prowess in his most recent game. As highlighted by Mundo Deportivo, the Spanish winger barely needed any time on the pitch to make his way past half the Deportivo Alaves team on his own.

Starting from his own half, he used a body feint to get away from two defenders marking him and continued to run with the ball towards the opposition’s half. Once there, he cut towards the left and the move made an Alaves player commit to him but completely miss the challenge.

In the next step, the Barcelona Golden Boy cut the ball towards his right this time and it left an opponent sliding across embarrassingly. Yamal then muscled through the defenders trying to shrug off the ball from him, but he managed to get past them and reach into an open space before cutting back onto his left foot to give himself more options.

To end the move off, he found a little space that showed him Raphinha completely wide open on the left wing. By pulling off a trivela, a move that has essentially become his trademark technique at this point, he gave a beautiful pass to his Barcelona teammate. While the Brazilian failed to score off that chance, this individual run from Yamal is undoubtedly one of the best pieces of individual play this season.