Lamine Yamal is flying in La Liga this season. At just 17, the youngster has scored 6 goals and 12 assists and is thriving under Hansi Flick. Lamine Yamal is arguably the best teenage talent the football world has ever witnessed. However, some critics argue that the Wonder Kid would not have been as successful in the English Premier League, which is more competitive than La Liga. So here I will try to determine how Lamine Yamal’s career would have gone under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.
Lamine’s place in the lineup
Manchester City were lacking a world-class winger on their right wing for many seasons. However, Savinho has arrived from Brazil and is putting on promising performances, as the 21-year-old has a goal and 8 assists this season. In my opinion, if Pep had Lamine Yamal in his squad, he would start over Savinho. There is a huge difference in quality between the two, as Lamine is more creative, unpredictable, has better vision, and is a better dribbler. That is nothing to discredit Savinho’s talent, who, in my opinion, has the potential to be a world-class winger. However, talents like Lamine Yamal are “born once every 50 years”, as said by the Inter Milan manager Simone Inzaghi after witnessing the teenager live in the 3-3 draw at the Montjuic.
How successful would Lamine be in the Premier League?
The Premier League is considered to be a more physical competition than La Liga. This means that wingers are met with more aggressive defending and will likely make fewer goal contributions in a season. This might have affected Lamine Yamal, and maybe there would be a slight decrease in his goal contributions. However, I think Yamal’s talent would still have prevailed over the Premier League defenders as you can see in the video. The youngster would have easily established himself as one of, if not the best, wingers in the Premier League this season. That is considering Mohammed Salah’s world-class form in the league this season. Still, in my opinion, there would be no one who comes close to Lamine Yamal purely in terms of talent.
Could Lamine Yamal change Man City’s trophyless season?
The previous season’s Premier League winners, Manchester City, currently sit 3rd in the table with 64 points. Pep Guardiola’s side is 18 points away from the new Champions, Liverpool. In the Champions League, the English side got knocked out by Real Madrid. It is safe to say this is the worst season of Pep Guardiola at Manchester City, which could be way better if he had a player like Lamine Yamal. There are games in the league where you face low-block defense teams, and there has to be a player who steps up to provide solutions with individual brilliance. Along with the structural problems and key absences like Rodri, Man City was also missing a player like Yamal. The youngster is a player who can be the x-factor in some games and create something from nothing. There was a stretch of the season in La Liga where Barcelona were struggling, and Lamine’s injury was a key factor.
Lamine Yamal would have made history if he were to feature in Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City. However, the starboy prefers Barcelona to anything and is making history with them. Only just 17, and he is fighting for a treble with the club of his life. He is also a strong candidate for the Ballon d’Or alongside his teammates Pedri and Raphinha.