Lamine Yamal is not a player who hides his emotions.
He didn’t do so after being substituted, on the verge of tears, in Barcelona’s first game of the new La Liga season against Elche following a disappointing performance last Sunday. Nor did he hide his determination to score against Rayo Vallecano on Monday night.
Before kick-off, the 19-year-old sat alone at the top of the steps in the Camp Nou tunnel, just down from the changing rooms. Everyone else was at the bottom of the steps, waiting to go on.
Yamal stayed behind, a serious expression on his face, his hands clasped tightly together. He only stood up when his team-mates began filing onto the pitch, to the sound of Barcelona’s anthem.
Seeing Yamal that serious is something different. He is usually so cheerful and visibly brimming with self-confidence, even capable of falling asleep on the coach on the way to the 2024 European Championship final, while the rest of the Spain squad were a bundle of nerves.
So what caused this sense of unease?
On social media and in the press, it was rumoured that he was angry about Barcelona’s treatment of Alejandro Balde, one of his best friends in the squad. It was also said that he was angry because Ferran Torres left for Paris Saint-Germain.
The reality does not match either of those theories. He simply felt he should be doing better.
According to sources close to the player — speaking anonymously as they did not have permission to comment — Yamal’s sulky demeanour was purely down to dissatisfaction with his recent performances.
After a season in which he struggled with groin pain from November until the start of 2026, he arrived at the World Cup with a thigh muscle injury, which meant he was not at peak form for the tournament this summer.
Although he was important to Spain’s victory, he did not have the breakthrough moment that so many had expected of him. He then had three weeks’ holiday, returned to Barcelona and the new season began. In the first two matches, he was still not at his best.
Against Elche on August 23, he had just two chances to score and missed both. In the 65th minute, Flick substituted him, which he didn’t take well. Barca were 2-0 up and went on to win 5-0.
In Barca’s 2-0 home win over Athletic Club on Thursday night, he had several more chances to score but could not find a way past Unai Simon. He had looked slightly sluggish in the game’s early stages, but improved in the second half and was very involved in Barca’s play.
Yamal was still a threat, still vital to Barcelona. All the same, questions were being asked. Athletic manager Edin Terzic gave an interesting answer at his post-match press conference.
“Let’s not forget that, first and foremost, we’re talking about human beings,” he said. “We’re talking about a very young player and someone who has experienced some incredible moments over the last few weeks.”
Yamal is still only 19. He has already won a World Cup and a European Championship, as well as three league titles, two Spanish Super Cups and a Copa del Rey.
Yamal’s goals on Monday were his first since winning the World Cup with Spain this summer (David Ramos/Getty Images)
But he wants more. The pressure comes from the fact that he wants to achieve everything he can: to be the star of his teams, to be the best in the world.
On Monday night, he went into the match against Rayo frustrated with himself and hungry to score. But Barca didn’t have the best start.
The home side went 1-0 down to a slick 12th-minute Sergio Camello goal on the counter. Before that, Yamal had missed two chances. He seemed slightly anxious; holding on to the ball too long in one instance, not quite connecting with a trivela shot in another.
In the 19th minute, Raphinha equalised. Two minutes later, Yamal had his moment.
Marc Bernal picked up a rebound, passed it to Yamal, who feinted to create space and lined up his shot before firing a powerful curling strike from the edge of the box into the top corner. It was impossible for the goalkeeper to save, a stunning goal.
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And there it was again. That smile, the one that hadn’t been seen for weeks. Yamal looked out for someone in the crowd, pointing with his finger (his mother, Sheila Ebana, and his partner, Ines Garcia, were in the stands). He then threw himself furiously into a knee slide. In his eyes, you could see the immediate sense of relief.
That was Yamal’s 50th goal for Barcelona, in his 154th appearance in all competitions. It made him the youngest player in Europe’s top five leagues to reach that total, surpassing Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland.
Yamal and Barcelona did not look back from there, the forward eventually rounding off a resounding win with another goal from outside the box in the 90th minute to make the points more than safe at 5-2.
That was his 51st. Barcelona meanwhile, have now scored 12 goals in their first three matches of the season, all without a recognised No 9 following the departures of Robert Lewandowski and Torres.
They still say they want Julian Alvarez, but Atletico Madrid’s stance on that does not look like changing on transfer deadline day. Up in the Camp Nou stands, however, Gabriel Jesus was watching on.
The 29-year-old Brazilian striker, who is set to join for around €10million (£8.5m; $11.6m) from Arsenal, will have marvelled at Yamal’s display. The young superstar looks ready for his next chapter.
