29 April 2023 , 20:53
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Barcelona have handed a senior debut to 15-year-old Lamine Yamal, who has become the youngest player to ever feature for the Spanish giants in LaLiga.
The talented teenager, who Xavi Hernandez confirmed was in the Barcelona matchday squad in the build-up to big the match, was introduced with the LaLiga leaders in cruise control with a commanding 4-0 lead over Real Betis.
At 15 years and 285 days old, Yamal, who is a graduate of the club's famous La Masia academy, is the youngest player to ever feature for Barcelona in LaLiga courtesy of his brief cameo on Saturday night.
And he almost marked his debut in style by going close to scoring just moments after replacing fellow wonderkid Gavi.
Barca boss Xavi talked up the teenager's talent earlier in the week. He said: "He's a player who can help us because he is talented. He's got a lot of personality, talent, he can play the final ball, take players on, he's strong, we're talking about a player who can mark an era at the club."
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"He's an innate talent, the new generations, the difference with my era is that they have no fear," the legendary midfielder added when he was asked to compare the youngster to stars of years gone by. "Lamine is different... he has attributes from various players, I don't see a direct comparison."
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Yamal was named in Barcelona's matchday squad earlier in the week (Getty Images)Barcelona's thumping 4-0 win over Real Betis was enough to get Xavi's side back on track following successive stalemates against Getafe and Girona.
Xavi has remained calm in spite of their recent wobble - and even blamed the pitch following their 0-0 draw with Getafe a fortnight ago. He said: "The state of the grass has affected us. Yesterday we trained with a dry field. I have been criticized a lot about the issue of this surface. It is very difficult to play like this."
The Catalan giants are still the red-hot favourites to pip Real Madrid to the LaLiga crown after being reinvigorated under the stewardship of Xavi, who was lured back to the Nou Camp following Ronald Koeman's dismissal midway through the 2021/22 campaign.
Xavi, who clocked up over 760 appearances for Barcelona during his storied playing career, has earned plenty of plaudits after defying the club's well-documented financial issues to lead a sustained title bid. The Spanish giants are now 11 points clear of their bitter rivals in the race to claim the LaLiga crown.