Legendary Spanish striker heaps praise on Barcelona’s attacking speedster

David Villa is regarded as one of the greatest Spanish attackers of the 21st century, with a track record of scoring almost 200 goals in La Liga.

Villa, who had almost 100 caps to his name for the Spanish national team, has been following the ongoing Euro 2024 quite closely.

Recently speaking to Sky Sports, David Villa was asked about the exploits of Lamine Yamal, who starred in Spain’s opening game against Croatia.

David Villa waxes lyrical on Lamine Yamal

Donning the iconic Spanish jersey, David Villa couldn’t hold back praise for Yamal as he labelled him as a special talent.

“Lamine is a unique and special player. He is only 16 years old and we can expect anything from him, without putting limits on his potential. Let’s try to enjoy watching him and not put too much pressure on him because he is still very young,” Villa said.

The next big thing in Spanish football? (Photo by Julian Finney/Getty Images)

During the win over Croatia, Lamine became the youngest-ever player to register an assist in the history of Euros. He is also the youngest to start a game in the history of the competition.

From his eight appearances with the Spanish national team, Yamal has scored twice while assisting five times – an impressive record for a 16-year-old.

Villa, though, admitted it is important to preserve the talent of Lamine Yamal and not put too much pressure on the youngster.

“We should let him play in his own way, in the end, he is 16 years old and more than to add pressure to him, we should help him to reach all the potential he has for the next few years,” he said.

Villa’s statement should serve as a reminder for Barcelona to indeed proceed with caution, as far as Yamal’s development is concerned. The last thing Barça fans would want to see, after all, is Yamal following the footsteps of Ansu Fati.