Lamine Yamal: Youngest Euro Goal Scorer with Stunning Strike: It was appropriate that Adrien Rabiot was standing directly in front of him when Lamine Yamal, who was making history as the youngest goalscorer in the history of the Euros, fired the shot from 27 yards out of goal. The Frenchman was questioned about the 16-year-old who is the talk of these Euros ahead of their semi-final match. He is endowed with many virtues. He can play with his qualities under pressure in both major competitions and at the club level. Rabiot could have stopped there and made it sound like just another meaningless compliment for a rival player. He turned on a switch, though, maybe weary of the early fanboying surrounding Spain’s star boy.
“He will need to perform better than he has so far in order to play in a Euro final.”
How had Yamal fared up to the semifinals? Establish himself as the man to own the right side, provide a quick outlet on the wings who could take on opponents head-on without missing a beat, and create space for his teammates. He had three assists in five contests.
As an attacker, scoring was the only thing left for him to do. Rabiot stood closest to him on Tuesday when he watched the ball curve around him and into the French net, so it was only fitting that he did so. In his defence, he was limited in his ability to halt it.
This wasn’t your typical outside-the-box, hit-with-force goal. It’s possible that the speed gun reading of 102 km/h was not accurate. No, this was far more intricate, made possible by nuanced subtleties that went way beyond the capabilities of a sixteen-year-old. Yamal regained possession of the ball in the inward-right channel outside the France box. He then pulled off a wonderful feint, wobbling outside before cutting back in, and he finished with a stunning curler in the top bin. Let’s rewatch the foot swapping action first before moving on to the shot.
Alvaro Morata, his own captain, and two French shirts are in the way of Yamal’s goal just as he receives the ball. He realises that before trying anything, he needs to purchase additional time and space. For a left-footed striker, the best angular advantage is provided by the inward-right channel. Most likely, that was the idea behind his motion with zero displacement. Sharply cutting back gives him the space and second he needs by eliminating Rabiot, his marker, from the picture.
Here’s the picture. The speed matters, but not quite as much as the swerve and the dip. Just when Yamal is about to wrap his foot around the ball, pause the video. Mike Maignan, the custodian for France, is positioned roughly three yards outside the goal line. In addition to curling in from outside the goal frame, the ball dipped in from above the six-foot-two goalkeeper’s reach into the goal behind, making it nearly impossible to stop. After falling behind early in the match, Spain had a way to tie the score with a stunning play.
The social media was sure to go crazy after the left-footed finish. A single image of Yamal has been circulating throughout the Euros. from his early six-month-old years. Lionel Messi and a newborn Yamal are shown smiling while the infant is being bathed in a bathtub by his mother. Although the image is from a calendar session, fans and the Spanish media have come to view it as a baptism ritual. from his godfather, a blessing. Shortly after his son’s valiant actions propelled Spain to their first European final since 2012, Yamal’s father personally announced as much, sharing a Photoshopped picture on his Instagram account. It shows Yamal Jr. lying in his cradle with Messi at his side and their calendar picture pasted beside the Spaniard’s pillow while he is clad in full Spanish kit.
Yamal’s greatest moments in Spain and, most importantly, his Barcelona shirt will probably be the subject of the frame. He became the youngest goal scorer in a World Cup or European Championship game on Tuesday by edging past both Pele and the opposition’s captain, Kylian Mbappe. As a point of perspective, Mbappe’s first goal at a significant international competition came at the age of 19 years and 183 days. At the age of 17, 239 days, Pele was. Yamal will turn seventeen in three days. right before his appearance in the Eurofinal. He’s probably done more than any 16-year-old needed to in order to get there. Rabiot would concur.
