What were you doing in the summer you turned 17? We know for a fact you weren’t scoring world-class goals in the European Championship.
That’s because Spain starlet Lamine Yamal’s latest trick in his breakthrough tournament was to break the record for the youngest-ever goalscorer in the competition and set a mark that may never be broken.
At just 16 years and 362 days (he turns 17 the day before the Euro 2024 final), Yamal was one of the first names on the Spanish team sheet for their semi-final clash against France and he quickly repaid manager Luis de la Fuente’s faith in him.
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Spain found themselves trailing 1-0 after Randal Kolo Muani headed home from a Kylian Mbappe cross after just eight minutes, but it didn’t take long for the teenager Yamal to conjure up a moment of magic against one of the tournament’s best defences.
Picking the ball up 25 yards from goal, Yamal showed quick feet to create some space out of nothing, before curling in a sublime left-footed shot in the corner of Mike Maignan’s goal.
“Special is an understatement,” exclaimed Jermaine Jenas on co-commentary duty for the BBC. “This kid is already world-class. That is unreal. Sixteen years of age. Fearless,” he continued.
Steve Wilson alongside him added that this could be a record that may never be broken. The previous record was held by Switzerland’s Johann Volanthen, who was a relative veteran at 18 years and 141 days.
Yamal had already set a mark for the most assists by a teenager at a European Championship, with his three so far beating the record set by a certain Cristiano Ronaldo at Euro 2004.
The hectic first half in Munich continued, with Yamal’s 21st-minute strike followed by a Dani Olmo goal just four minutes later to put Spain 2-1 up. The winners of this match will face the victors of England and the Netherlands’ semi-final in Sunday’s showpiece in Berlin.
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