The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner has shared the global football spotlight with Ronaldo for nearly 20 years, with both legends leaving a lasting legacy on the game. ..Continue Reading
But as their careers begin to wind down, a fresh wave of talent is stepping into the limelight.
When Messi listed the players who inspire young footballers now, he pointedly excluded both himself and Ronaldo. Instead, he named Robert Lewandowski—one of their long-time contemporaries—alongside four rising stars from across Europe.
“Kids watch and imitate everything”, Messi told Simplemente Fútbol. “They know everyone and follow everyone, the players they talk about are Mbappe, Vini Junior, Haaland, Lewandowski and Lamine Yamal.”
Indeed, Messi reserved special praise for fellow La Masia product Yamal, who helped Spain to Euro 2024 glory and is leading Barcelona to a possible treble this term, despite being just 17.
Messi said: “It’s impressive what Lamine Yamal is doing and has already achieved.
“He’s already a European champion with Spain. He’s just 17, in the middle of a growth process, and will keep on growing and contributing, just as I did.
“He has incredible quality and is already one of the best players in the world.”
Yamal played a key role in Barcelona’s dramatic comeback against Celta Vigo on Sunday, helping his team stay seven points ahead at the top of the La Liga table.
Barcelona overturned a 3-1 deficit to secure a thrilling 4-3 victory, moving a step closer to clinching the league title.
Lewandowski, Yamal’s teammate at the club, has previously admitted he was stunned by the youngster’s age when they first shared the pitch.
The Poland icon said: “He came to train with us when he was 15 years old, I saw him for the first time.
“I’ve seen a lot of young, talented people, ‘Oh, he’s got something!’, but I was never sure that there would be a great career behind it. Until I saw Lamine. And I said ‘wow’. I asked him his age, he told me fifteen, and I replied that it was impossible.”
