“He is the chosen one” - Xavi makes confident claim about Barcelona star after 2-0 win over Real Sociedad
Barcelona manager Xavi gushed about Lamine Yamal's performance during his side's 2-0 home win over Real Sociedad in La Liga on Monday, May 13.
Yamal broke the deadlock in the 40th minute. He also created several chances and put on an impressive overall display. Raphinha scored Barca's second goal in the second half injury time (90+3').
Xavi was left thoroughly impressed by Yamal's showing. Speaking about the 16-year-old prodigy, the manager told the media after the match (via Barca Universal):
"He is the chosen one. Lamine Yama's improvement in 1 year is extraordinary. He's not perfect at a tactical level, but that's normal, he's 16 years old."
Yamal made his senior Barcelona debut last season and has cemented his spot as a regular first-team starter in the ongoing campaign. He has made 47 appearances across competitions for Xavi's side this season, scoring seven goals and providing nine assists.
Barca, meanwhile, leapfrogged Girona into the second spot in the La Liga table. La Blaugrana now have 76 points from 35 matches, one more than Girona. Xavi's side, though, trail champions Real Madrid by 14 points.
Lamine Yamal reacts to scoring in Barcelona's win
Lamine Yamal expressed happiness at being able to get on the scoresheet during Barcelona's win against Real Sociedad. The youngster credited Robert Lewandowski and Ilkay Gundogan's contributions leading up to his goal.
Yamal also claimed that his team struggled to find their feet initially before eventually carving their way back into the contest.
"It's a big game for us we needed to win it to get back to second place- we still have nine points to fight for. I saw Robert's pass and Gundo was there- he's very dangerous there, it's his best position- all I had to do was finish it off," he said (via Barca Blaugranes).
"we struggled to find out feet but slowly and surely we were better. Robert and I were talking afterwards about a few moments in the game when I could have done a bit better but it's good vibes in the dressing room," Yamal added.
Yamal further added that Sociedad got away with two handballs. Regardless of the adversities, Barcelona managed to get the job done over the Basque club.