Featured Image Credit: Getty
Topics: Lamine Yamal, Barcelona, La Liga
Ryan Smart
Spanish influencer Fati Vasquez has released a statement after being spotted with Barcelona star Lamine Yamal on holiday amid a 12-year age gap between the pair.
Yamal is currently enjoying time away from football after Barcelona failed to qualify for the Club World Cup.
The 18-year-old is one of the leading contenders to win the 2025 Ballon d'Or award following a remarkable individual season, which included a maiden La Liga title win.
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Photos of Yamal spending time on holiday with 29-year-old Vasquez, a Spanish influencer and model, went viral earlier this week.
The pair posted photos from the same location on Italy, and could be seen on a jet ski together.
According to Spanish gossip columnist Javi de Hoyos, Yamal 'categorically denies that he's with her; he says they have nothing going on', and stated that the Barca forward 'didn't go to this vacation spot alone, but with other Barca team-mates'.
De Hoyos then claimed that Vasquez 'does have something going on with someone at Barca or is the friend of another team-mate'.
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Since the photos emerged, Vasquez has received abuse and death threats on her personal Instagram page, which has almost 500,000 followers.
The model - who also clarified that she is 29, rather than 30 as had previously been reported - has now been forced to release a public statement.
"I'm getting slammed, and it feels unfair," she began. "First of all, I'm 29, I haven't even turned 30 yet. I haven't done anything wrong; I haven't hurt anyone.
"This is affecting my family deeply, and honestly, I don't want it to escalate further. We're talking about death threats, being called a pedophile, insults... it's already way too much.
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"When it's an older man, no-one says a word... But when it's a woman with a young guy, suddenly it's a problem!
"I just spent a few days with Lamine, which is exactly what's shown in the photos. And that's it. I'm not going to say anything more, nor do I want to blow it up or make it into a scandal, because to me, it's completely unnecessary."