FC Barcelona Ace Lamine Yamal Answers Party Life Critics

FC Barcelona ace Lamine Yamal answered a question for critics of his partying lifestyle on the day that his contract renewal was made official and that the teenager inherited the number 10 shirt from Ansu Fati.

The Ballon d’Or candidate has come under fire recently for his lavish 18th birthday party and other trips to Ibiza and Brazil over Barca’s summer holidays.

With Hansi Flick’s men returning to work and starting their preseason campaign on the landmark day for Lamine becoming of adult age, July 13, his contract renewal and inheritance of the number 10 from past greats such as Ronaldinho, Diego Maradona, Rivaldo and Lionel Messi was made official on Wednesday.

Lamine answered questions in Catalan from the Catalan press and others in Spanish, and towards the end of a press conference, he was asked about his activities away from the pitch.

“At the end of the day I work for Barca, and I play for Barca. And when I’m away from the Ciudad Esportiva (i.e. the Club’s Joan Camper HQ) I enjoy my life and that’s it,” he stated in Spanish.

“The truth is that both criticism and praise, if they are not from my family or from people very close to me, I am indifferent, because if not, one day I will be very high and another very low,” Lamine also said elsewhere.

Regarding Messi, who he is often compared to because of their similarities as left-footed La Masia geniuses, Lamine noted how the Argentine “made his way” while vowing to make his own.

“The 10 comes from Ansu now, so I will try to make all the Culers happy, those who are there (at Camp Nou) and those who are at home,” he promised.

Lamine called Maradona, Ronaldinho and Messi “three legends of football, three legends of this club”.

“I would keep everything from each of them. I am grateful for the trust of the club, and I will try to continue that legacy,” he added.

Lamine has pressure to live up to past greats at FC Barcelona

As Ansu could tell Lamine, there are fewer jerseys heavier than the number 10 at FC Barcelona. Being a first team star is one thing, but doing the shirt justice and living up to the names of those that have gone before him will add extra pressure on a figure that we must remember is still a boy despite having recently become an adult.