Barcelona teammate issues defence of Lamine Yamal – “People don’t appreciate what he does” | OneFootball

There has been a lot of scrutiny on Lamine Yamal in recent weeks, particularly in regards to his performances for Barcelona. The winger has struggled to reach his best levels, although that has been in-part down to him still struggling with the groin injury that initially sidelined him in September.

Nevertheless, much has been made of Lamine Yamal’s performance levels, especially during last weekend’s El Clasico defeat at the Santiago Bernabeu. He has attracted criticism, but according to Barcelona teammate Alejandro Balde, this is not justified.

Speaking after Barcelona’s 3-1 victory over Elche on Sunday (via MD), Balde issued a strong defence of Lamine Yamal, as he made it clear that what his teammate is doing at such a young age should be commended, not criticised.

“It’s true that he’s always in the spotlight, but I think Lamine is a great professional despite his young age. What he is doing at only 18 years old is incredible. Sometimes people don’t appreciate what he does, as they should. At his age, what he’s doing can’t be described in words.”

Image via Alex Caparros/Getty Images

It has not been an easy few weeks for Barcelona, who have fallen to defeats against the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Sevilla and Real Madrid. Lamine Yamal has certainly not been at his best, but the same can also be said for a number of his teammates, who have not received anywhere near as much scrutiny from the wider footballing public.

Barcelona will hope Lamine Yamal has turned a corner

Nevertheless, there will now be hope that Lamine Yamal can return to his best levels in the  coming weeks, especially considering that he found the back of the net against Elche, with what was his third goal of the season. And although he is still suffering with groin issues, they are becoming more and more manageable.