History was made at the Spotify Camp Nou on Saturday evening. In the 83rd minute of Barcelona’s 4-0 victory over Real Betis, 15-year-old Lamine Yamal made his first team debut for the Blaugrana.
It was a surreal moment for many watching, to see someone so young on the football pitch, especially since 41-year-old Joaquin Sanchez had just been on the field for Betis moments prior.
Yamal already holds the record for the youngest player ever to be included for a matchday squad for Barcelona, having been named in the squad for last weekend’s match against Atletico Madrid, and his cameo on Saturday made him the youngest player to ever feature for the club in a competitive match.
Aged 15 years and 290 days, he smashed the previous record, which was held by Vicenc Martínez Sagi, who debuted at 16 years old and 280 in 1941, and Ansu Fati, at 16 years and 298 days in 2019.
Remarkably, he is only the fifth youngest player to ever play in the top flight of Spanish football. Luka Romero (Mallorca) holds the record at 15 years and 219 days, and he is followed by Samson (Celta), Irastorza (Real Sociedad) and Oscar Ramon Pellicer (Zaragoza).
Yamal has an incredibly bright future ahead of him, and Barcelona will hope that he fulfils his potential in Catalonia, although there appears to be some doubt as to whether that will be the case.
Image via Alex Caparros/Getty Images
