Spain: Rodri dreams big for Lamine Yamal

To have any hope of winning the 2026 Ballon d'Or, Lamine Yamal will need to shine at the 2026 World Cup with Spain. Rodri believes in the FC Barcelona prodigy.

As captain of La Roja, Rodri believes that Lamine Yamal will one day claim the most prestigious individual accolade in football.

"One day, he'll win the Ballon d'Or—he's a beast. He's an extraordinary young man. I have a great relationship with him. People don't really know him. I invite everyone to get to know him, because he's a fantastic guy. (...) Are people unfair to him? No, I think players of his caliber, with this kind of talent and uniqueness, always generate a huge buzz, both positive and negative. You have to live with it. What maturity he has! In some ways, the image people have of him doesn't match reality. He has amazing values for his age. He's very focused, very mature. Let's not forget, he's only 18, as we've all been. I'm happy because he's growing so much," the Manchester City midfielder shared with DAZN.

Joshua SOSSOU

Editorfr, en, ar

As a sports fan, and particularly a football fan, I've been putting my writing talent to good use for a number of years now to promote African talent and the continent's football in general. On Foot Africa, enjoy reading each of my lines.

Related teams and leagues

Spain