Yamal will be the next player from Barcelona to wear the number 10 jersey
Barcelona’s 18-year-old winger Lamine Yamal received the famous number 10 shirt that club hero Lionel Messi previously wore following an impressive breakthrough season.
After an incredible season in which he scored 18 goals and provided 25 assists, Yamal was given the jersey as Barcelona proceeded to the Champions League semi-finals and won the domestic triple of La Liga, Copa del Rey, and Spanish Super Cup.
The young player, who finished the previous season wearing the number 19 shirt, secured his long-term future with Barcelona in May by agreeing to a contract extension that would keep him there until 2031.
He received the number 10 shirt from club president Joan Laporta on Wednesday in a special ceremony.
The number 10 shirt has a lot of significance at Camp Nou because Messi wore it during his trophy-filled tenure at the team that launched his career.
Due to the team’s financial struggles, the Argentine left Barcelona after the 2020–21 season, but he took with him 34 trophies and 672 goals, becoming him the club’s all-time leading scorer.
At Barcelona, legends like Ronaldinho and Diego Maradona also wore the number 10 shirt, but Yamal said he would not be bound by its past.
“With the number 10, Messi cleared the path, and I’ll make mine,” Yamal said to reporters.
“They are three legendary figures in soccer and clubs.” Every child aspires to own something from Maradona, Ronaldinho, or Messi. I’ll do my best to continue that tradition.
“My first dream was to wear the number 10 and make my Barca debut. That is what every child growing up here aspires to. I appreciate the club.
After Messi left, the shirt was given to Ansu Fati, a gifted winger. However, the now-22-year-old failed to live up to his early potential and was eventually loaned to Brighton & Hove Albion.
Fati will spend the next season on loan at AS Monaco to allow Yamal to inherit one of football’s most recognizable shirt numbers.
After winning the European Championship with Spain the year before, Yamal said that his next goal is to win the titles that are missing from his trophy cabinet.
He declared, “I haven’t won the World Cup or the Champions League.” “Now, these are my objectives.”
