Barcelona scout who discovered Lamine Yamal sent club seven-word message after watching him play for the first time
A Barcelona scout who discovered Lamine Yamal issued the club a seven-word message after watching him play for the first time.
Yamal has emerged as one of the best players in world football following his performances for Barca.
His impressive showings this season comes after a superb Euro 2024 campaign, where he inspired Spain to glory.
The 17-year-old graduated from the club's famed youth academy before breaking into the first-team.
Advert
But he joined the youth academy from La Torreta in 2014.
During a visit to the playground of La Torreta, three 'key names' watched him play.
Barca scout Isidre Gil, La Torreta president Rafa Rodríguez and La Torreta coordinator of youth football Juan Gascon watched Yamal in action and they couldn't believe their eyes.
Amid Yamal's success, former Barca youth coordinator Albert Puig has revealed the story behind the star winger's initial arrival at La Masia.
Ruig recalled: "Isidre Gil, a true legend, went to the courtyard of La Torreta and asked if there were any good players. Gascon replied: ‘Look, there’s a dark-skinned lad who is very good.’
"The next day they played a match and won 6-0. Isidre saw him and said: 'This kid has to play for Barca'."
Barca's interest quickly intensified, and another club scout urged the Catalan side to act fast as Espanyol were also interested at the time.
Yamal eventually went on trial with Barca, but he had forgotten his boots.
Puig added: "Gascon told him a thousand times not to forget anything, but of course, he was a six-year-old boy. He forgot his boots and we lent him some."
On his performance, he said: "Despite being one or two years younger than others, he stood out incredibly. And as I was there, you can already imagine who made the decision."
Yamal's parents held a 'decisive meeting' with La Torreta's board, with the superstar talent opting to join Barca.
“They told them: 'You have an offer from Espanyol and an offer from Barca, what do you want to do?' The parents thought about it calmly," he continued
"Finally, the scout suggested asking the boy directly. And Lamine said he wanted to go to Bacça, mainly because of how well they treated him."
Topics: Lamine Yamal, Barcelona, Football
Nasir Jabbar