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Starting 2025 with a bang.

Lamine Yamal has kicked off his 2025 Ballon d’Or campaign with a jaw-dropping strike

Nestor Watach •

With his latest goal, Barcelona wonderkid Lamine Yamal has offered another reminder that he’s destined for greatness.

At this point, we’ve gotten used to the fact that he’s one of the most freakishly talented young footballers football has ever produced.

He was a no-brainer for Tuttosport’s prestigious Golden Boy award last year, and he’s just followed that up with the Emerging Player Award at the recent Globe Soccer Awards.

At this point Yamal has transcended the wonderkid tag. The talent is such that we can stop placing his achievements in the context of his age and start categorising him as one of the best players in world football, full stop.

He belongs in the conversation alongside Mohamed Salah, Vinicius Junior or Rodri – players who’ve spent years honing their craft to get to the very top.

Think a 17-year-old Pele at the 1958 World Cup. A teenage Wayne Rooney at Euro 2004. Lionel Messi when he was first breaking through at Barcelona, or his idol Neymar at Santos. Forces of nature that just had it from day one.

Barcelona have endured turbulent times in the post-Messi era. The saga registering Dani Olmo has served as a painful reminder that they’re not nearly out of choppy waters yet.

Yet with a generational talent this hungry and committed to their cause, Barca fans can dream of a bright future.

“I don’t know when (the contract will be signed), but I believe it’ll be soon,” Yamal told CNN Sport.

“In the end, Barca is the club of my life. I hope to renew my contract with them and to be with them as long as possible. I want to play in the Spanish league. I want to play for Barca, and yes, I will renew my contract. I will.”

Alexander Sorloth’s last-gasp winner for Atletico Madrid was a fitting full stop on a disastrous end to 2024 for Barcelona.

Their early lead at the summit of La Liga had completely evaporated and a poor run of form now sees them third in the table, five points behind a Real Madrid side they thrashed 4-0 at the Bernabeu as recently as October.

The Catalan club’s tumble coincided with a spell on the sidelines for Yamal. But now he’s back, and he looked fit, fresh and firing on all cylinders in their 2-0 Super Cup semi-final victory over Athletic Club.

His first touch to get the ball under his spin as he turned into space before finishing to double Barcelona’s lead was pure perfection.

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Yamal already has one La Liga winner’s medal under his belt, from the 2022-23 campaign under Xavi when he originally made his debut as a record-breaking 15-year-old.

But he only played seven minutes in that title-winning campaign, and now he’s targeting silverware as one of the leading lights of Hansi Flick’s team.

Barcelona endured a tough, underwhelming trophyless campaign last year – Yamal’s breakthrough season – but he since demonstrated his ability to perform on the biggest stage with a series of breathtaking displays in Spain’s Euro 2024 triumph.

And on the basis of his exceptionally well-taken effort against Athletic Club, we might well be set for more of the same as his boyhood club target four pieces of silverware in the latter half of the 2024-25 season.

“It’s true that Hansi is a different coach. The style of play is different,” he continued in his CNN interview.

“We’ve looked to adapt to what he’s told us, and I think we’re doing it well. In 2025, we’ll give it our all to win trophies, starting with the Spanish Super Cup and hopefully, it will be the best year of our lives.”

Real Madrid are likely waiting in the final, giving Barcelona the perfect opportunity to shake off their rustiness and kick off 2025 with a statement.

Salah is undoubtedly leading the race for this year’s Ballon d’Or, but his ridiculous exploits in the first half of the season will soon be forgotten if he’s outshone come the business end.

We’re approaching the key months of the season in which legends are made. Yamal looks fully focused on delivering.

Forget good for his age. We might well be looking at 2025’s MVP already.

By Nestor Watach

Lamine Yamal Barcelona