16-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal has been tearing it up at Euros for Spain but has the flags of two other nations on his boots. Yamal has been in fine form in his first major tournament for La Roja, with two assists to his name and a slew of outstanding performances.
The Barcelona wonderkid, born in July 2007, has even been doing school homework and exams while at the showpiece in Germany. The youngest player to feature in a Euros knockout game, Yamal has been capped 13 times for Spain. He played for his birth country at youth level before making the step up to the senior side and scoring on his debut in September.
But Yamal would have been eligible to play for two other countries through his parents. His mother is from Equatorial Guinea, while his father Mounir Nasraoui was born in Morocco. He could have been playing at the AFCON had he elected to choose one of the other available options. But a nod to his family heritage, Yamal has both flags on his Adidas F50 boots.
It is a similar tribute to Chelsea and England star Cole Palmer, who has the St. Kitts and Nevis flag on his boots. Palmer’s grandfather, Sterry Cole, is from the Caribbean country.
Yamal has been one of the stars of Euro 2024 and even matched a Cristiano Ronaldo record against Georgia. Remarkably, German law stipulates that under-18s are not allowed to work past 8pm – even if foreign. Athletes like Yamal are given an exemption but only till 11pm. Technically, the Spanish FA could be fined €30,000 if Yamal goes over curfew, but manager Luis de La Fuente is calm about the situation.
“We’re all responsible for his [Yamal] wellbeing. We’re going to do our job and let him play. Nothing more,” he said. “I don’t know the German legislation. Does Lamine have to be removed by 23:00? I don’t think so.”
Credit: Sport Bible
