It was a night of high emotion at the New York New Jersey Stadium as a tearful Lionel Messi was consoled by Spain’s teenage sensation Lamine Yamal after the final whistle. The moment looked and felt symbolic – a passing of the torch from one Barcelona legend to the next.
Messi, now 39, gazed long and hard at Argentina’s fans as they sang his name in what may be his last appearance on the game’s biggest stage. But it was Yamal who offered the great Argentine icon consolation, the two falling into each other’s arms – Barcelona’s current number 10 embracing their most legendary number 10.
The scene was a world away from the famous photo that resurfaced ahead of the final: a 20-year-old Messi bathing a six-month-old Yamal in September 2007 for a charity calendar. The baby boy is now a man, and Messi may be at the end of his World Cup journey while Yamal stands at the very beginning.
The 19-year-old has effectively completed international football, lifting the World Cup two years after winning the European Championship with Spain.
He came into the tournament troubled by a hamstring injury but ended it as the youngest player – at 19 years and six days – to win both the World Cup and the Euros.
One of the key storylines from a disappointing final was how Yamal’s influence was assisted by the purist strategies of his Spain team-mates, while Messi was betrayed by Argentina’s provocative approach. It yielded nothing, “which was what it deserved”, as one observer remarked.
Ferran Torres’s decisive 106th-minute strike in extra time sealed the victory. Yamal remains unbeaten for his country in the 28 competitive matches he has played. He has started 13 games at major tournaments and won all of them – the longest 100% win record of any European player across major tournaments when starting.
He has also become, alongside 19-year-old team-mate Pau Cubarsí, just the fourth and fifth teenagers to start and win a World Cup final after Pelé (1958), Giuseppe Bergomi (1982) and Kylian Mbappé (2018).
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente paid tribute to his young star. “He has played great football that will help him to mature and become an even greater footballer than he already is. He really sacrificed for the collective good. In my opinion, he played a great World Cup,” he said.
Yamal shrugged off Argentina’s obvious attempts to intimidate him, frequently coming into close contact with defender Nicolás Tagliafico without losing his composure. Former England goalkeeper and BBC Sport pundit Joe Hart said: “Not only did Lamine Yamal not react, but he also stood up to it. He was not rattled, and he did not back down. He had the entire team trying to smash him. He just stayed real cool. It was a real standout performance from him.
“Lamine Yamal is 19 years old. What a beautiful day for him. He’s 19 and has completed football.”
With virtually his whole career ahead of him, and with the experience and influence of Spain team-mates such as captain and player of the tournament Rodri, there is every chance Lamine Yamal will add more successes before he is done.
