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Lamine Yamal, the Spanish teenage sensation, has left the national squad before their UEFA Nations League home match against Serbia on Tuesday, October 15, after suffering a strain in a muscle in his left leg. According to the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), Lamine Yamal, who felt minor discomfort in his left leg during Spain’s 1-0 win over Denmark last weekend, was sent back to his club Barcelona following his diagnosis, to avoid “the risk of injury.”
Notably, Lamine Yamal faced a lot of strong tackles from Danish players during their UEFA Nations League clash at the Estadio Nueva Condomina in Murcia. Although Spain walked out as the victorious side against Denmark after Martin Zubimendi’s goal in the 79th minute, the 17-year-old was seen limping back to the Spanish team bus following the conclusion of the tough game.
Against young players with his talent, opponents try to intimidate and look for contact: Luis de la Fuente on Lamine Yamal's muscle strain
The head coach of the Spanish national football team, Luis de la Fuente spoke about the rough play from Denmark players towards Lamine Yamal and remarked, as per ESPN, “You have to apply the toughness that the rules allow. There is a referee there to mark the limit. Against young players with his talent, [opponents] try to intimidate and look for contact.”
While Luis de la Fuente was behind Lamine Yamal in how he was treated by the opposition players on the pitch, he also wanted the teenager to get used to these kinds of situations. He said, “The referee has to protect these talented players, but Lamine has to get used to it. I would love it to be a bed of roses, Flower Power, but this sport is like that.”
“Lamine displayed an exceptional attitude and generated a lot for us from the right flank. He has a special talent. From there, I had a teammate who used to say: 'What do you want, kisses [from the opponents]?' Teams use the weapons they can within the rules,” added the Spanish head coach, who has replaced him with Rodrigo Riquelme for the upcoming UEFA Nations League clash against Serbia in a couple of days’ time.
