Lamine Yamal wears both names on his shirt but neither is related to his family and here's why.
Yamal has emerged as one of the best players in world football following his stellar performances for club and country.
He enjoyed a breakthrough campaign at Barcelona last season, scoring seven goals in 50 appearances. This season, he has registered an impressive 13 goals in 38 games.
And the 17-year-old excelled at last summer's Euro 2024, inspiring Spain to glory while bagging the Young Player of the Tournament award.
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Yamal has been delivering the goods whilst having BOTH names on the back of his shirt.
Why? Well, there's a fascinating origin behind his name.
The teenage phenom's full name is Lamine Yamal Nasraoui Ebana.
Nasraoui is his father's surname while Ebana is his mother's, with Lamine Yamal a compound name. So, Yamal is not his surname.
According to Tribuna, Yamal's parents gave him the name of 'Lamine' and 'Yamal' in honour of two people who helped them shortly after his birthday.
Two individuals named Lamine and Yamal assisted them with their rent during a difficult period.
The star player's father, Mounir, promised that if they ever had a child, he would name the child after them as a 'gesture of gratitude'.
In Arabic, Lamine and Yamal means 'honestly' and 'beauty', signifying the special meaning behind the names.
A fitting name considering the way Yamal plays his football. He appears destined to win the Ballon d'Or in the future as he shared his views on this year's prize.
Asked about his and Raphinha's chances of winning the prestigious individual award, he replied: "We haven’t talked about that. If we win the titles, they have ahead of us, one of us will win it, whoever it is. I’m very happy for Raphinha, I always tell him his change has been incredible and he’s having a great time. The Ballon d’Or does not worry me."
Topics: Lamine Yamal, Barcelona, Spain, Football
Nasir Jabbar