Lamine Yamal, the rising star of FC Barcelona, once again stirred the pot regarding Real Madrid, particularly targeting a club legend who is also a current star, following his team's victory in El Clasico on Sunday.
Despite the disappointment of their recent Champions League semifinal loss to Inter Milan, Yamal displayed exceptional form against Carlo Ancelotti's side, contributing significantly to what could be a pivotal moment in the La Liga title race.
In the early stages of the match at Montjuïc, Barcelona appeared to be shaken by their midweek defeat, falling two goals behind—an echo of their struggles against Inter. However, Eric Garcia managed to pull one back in the 19th minute, and Yamal equalized in the 32nd, signaling to the fans to remain calm amidst the chaos.
Celebrating his goal, Yamal jogged over to the corner flag and executed a celebration reminiscent of Cristiano Ronaldo's iconic gesture from 2012 during a similar fixture. Just as Ronaldo had done years before, Yamal’s confidence paid off; Raphinha added two more goals before halftime, giving Barcelona an impressive 4-2 lead.
Kylian Mbappé later completed his hat-trick with the only goal of the second half, although both teams saw additional strikes ruled out by VAR. Earlier in April, Thierry Henry had playfully asked Yamal for a shirt swap after Barcelona's first leg win over Inter. They fulfilled this promise at full time, marking a memorable connection between past and present Barcelona legends.
In a cheeky move, Yamal also took a jab at Real Madrid midfielder Jude Bellingham and former captain Sergio Ramos after his standout performance in El Clasico. Both Bellingham and Ramos had recently liked an Instagram post from Inter Milan's Alessandro Bastoni celebrating their advancement in the Champions League. Yamal responded with his own post, captioning it, "Don't forget to like this one too."
Fans reacted enthusiastically to Yamal’s bravado. One supporter commented, “Ooh Jude, didn’t you like this one?” while another praised his confidence, saying, “This guy is too cocky and I love it.” A third fan added, “Ryan putting Madrid on a leash, hell yeah!” Many agreed that Yamal’s achievements—three goals and two assists in four El Clasico matches, along with breaking the record for the most La Liga goals before turning 18—justified his playful banter.
With this latest victory, Barcelona equaled their record from the 1982-83 season, achieving four El Clasico wins in a single campaign, having already triumphed over Real Madrid in La Liga, the Spanish Super Cup final, and the Copa del Rey final earlier this season.
In that memorable match in 2012, Real Madrid, returning to Camp Nou after a humiliating 5-0 defeat the previous season, had seen Alexis Sanchez score a late equalizer to make it 1-1. Ronaldo then netted the decisive goal, showcasing one of his many iconic celebrations. That season, José Mourinho’s Madrid clinched the La Liga title over Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, but it appears that Lamine Yamal is set to be part of a winning narrative this time around.
Barcelona now sits seven points clear at the top of the La Liga table with three matches remaining, though the path to this point could have been quite different.
Sarah H.
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