Lamine Yamal Vs Lionel Messi: FC Barcelona Prez Joan Laporta Shuts Down Fans On Comparison Talks

Barcelona president Joan Laporta believes Lamine Yamal is a “genius” and the best in the world in his position.

Off the back of an incredible 2024-25 campaign, which saw Yamal score 13 goals and register 18 assists on his way to a domestic treble, the winger scored a brace in a 7-3 pre-season win over Seoul.

The 18-year-old has also inherited the famous number 10 shirt at the club, drawing more comparisons to Barcelona icon Lionel Messi.

Similar to Pep Guardiola earlier in the week, Laporta has urged fans not to compare Yamal to the Barcelona legend and feels the teenager is making his own mark as one of the best in the sport.

“Lamine Yamal is Lamine Yamal, Leo Messi was Leo Messi,” Laporta told CNN. “Leo Messi has been the best player in the world, and Lamine is the best player in the world (in his position).

“Messi won everything, Messi did everything, for me probably the best player in history, but the world continues and [there] appears new geniuses. The new geniuses that are appearing nowadays are players like Lamine Yamal, like Pedri, like Raphinha."

“In the case of Lamine, there are not too many players like him because he’s a genius, and he’s the top level.

“I think that the most important thing is that he enjoys the team. It is very important that he feels good, that he can stay with his colleagues on the pitch, enjoying playing football, and out of the pitch, enjoying as a boy that likes a normal life.

“He is very professional, and he knows that to be the best and to be at the top, he needs to be fit, he needs to train, he needs to follow the advice of the coach and the people that are around him and basically to feel happy, to feel that he’s enjoying playing football.”

Yamal is set to feature again on Monday (August 4) in Barcelona's final game of their pre-season tour of South Korea against Daegu.