"Best footballer in the world", "Levels above Vinicius" - Fans hail Spain star's performance in their 4-1 win over Switzerland
Spain fans waxed lyrical about Lamine Yamal on social media after he had an excellent performance in their 4-1 win against Switzerland in the 2024 Nations League on Sunday (September 8). A section of fans also believe that the Barcelona forward is now better than Real Madrid's Vinicius Junior.
Yamal shone from the get-go, brilliantly assisting Joselu in the fourth minute with a delightful cross to the back post where the latter headed home to make it 1-0. Becir Omeragic found the back of the net three minutes later, but his effort was ruled out by VAR due to an offside.
Fabian Ruiz doubled Spain's advantage in the 13th minute, finishing off a move that started with a brilliant Lamine Yamal through ball. However, Robert Le Normand was given a straight red card for a poor foul soon after, reducing La Roja to 10 men. Zeki Amdouni then pulled one back for Switzerland in the 41st minute with a close-range finish.
Fortunately, Spain held their resolve in the second half to seal the win via Ruiz's second (77') and another from Ferran Torres (80').
Fans were impressed by Yamal's performance despite the 17-year-old only playing the first half. He provided one assist, created two chances, and won eight duels. In addition, the youngster has now garnered three goals and nine assists in 16 appearances for Spain. This has already put him higher than Vinicius in goal contributions - who has five goals and five assists in 34 games for Brazil.
One fan posted:
"Just give the Ballon D’or to Yamal man he’s levels above Vinicus and Bellingham plus won the Euros."
Another fan tweeted:
"Lamine Yamal is the best footballer in the world. Argue with your keyboard."
Other fan reactions can be seen below:
"He has a better international legacy than Vini at 17 already. What a GEM," one fan commented.
"Yamal already becoming a problem from central areas at 17. Yeah wrap it up man this is the kid who’s taking the crown next," one fan predicted.
"Lamine Yamal at age 17 now has more G/A for his country than Vinicius has for Brazil. Lamine Yamal at age 17 also has more assists for his country than Rashford & Saka combined for England," another added.
"What a Player. Thanks to Xavi for believing in him," another tweeted.
"He's definitely heading for the big time," one fan chimed in.
Spain bounce back in Group D following 4-1 win against Switzerland in the Nations League
Euro 2024 winners Spain showed great resilience to defeat Switzerland, despite being down to 10 men for 70 minutes. They bounced back from their 0-0 draw against Serbia (September 5) and are now second in Group D with four points from two games, two points behind Denmark.
Switzerland used their man advantage to dominate possession with 66 percent of the ball, completing 555 passes with an accuracy of 88 percent. In comparison, La Roja had 34 percent possession and completed 245 passes with an accuracy of 77 percent.
Despite having less of the ball, Spain generated the more threatening attacks up front, landing nine shots in total with eight being on target. They had an xG of 2.08 and mustered five big chances as well. Meanwhile, the Swiss had 20 shots in total but directed just three on target, striking the woodwork once.