Rabat – Barcelona star Lamine Yamal has named Lionel Messi as the greatest player in football history, saying there is no doubt over his choice based on what he has watched throughout his life.
Yamal discussed the debate during an interview with Egyptian television channel On Sport’s “Min Cairo” program, where he was asked to choose between Messi, Pele and Diego Maradona.
“Messi. From what I have seen and watched, I would choose Messi, for everything he has done and everything he continues to do,” Yamal said, according to Kooora’s report of the interview.
Egyptian outlet Youm7 separately reported Yamal describing the Argentine as “the greatest player in football history.”
Yamal’s comments add to the long-standing connection between the Barcelona youngster and the club’s most decorated former player.
Yamal continues to admire Messi
Both players came through Barcelona’s La Masia academy, although their senior careers at the Catalan club never overlapped.
Messi left Barcelona in 2021 after spending more than two decades at the club, while Yamal made his first-team debut in 2023 and has since developed into one of the central figures in Barcelona’s attack.
The pair also shared a memorable moment following the 2026 World Cup final between Spain and Argentina. In a recent interview with The Guardian, Yamal recalled embracing Messi after Spain’s victory and thanking him for everything he had given to football.
Yamal’s On Sport interview covered several other subjects, including Barcelona, Egyptian football and Liverpool star Mohamed Salah.
The 19-year-old described Salah as a “great and very important player” and also spoke positively about Egyptian youngster Hamza Abdelkarim, predicting a promising future for the forward.
But when the conversation turned to the greatest player the sport has produced, Yamal’s answer was unequivocal.
His choice of Messi comes despite comparisons that have increasingly followed Yamal during his rise at Barcelona, where his playing style, La Masia background and early success have inevitably drawn parallels with the Argentine.
Yamal, however, has repeatedly spoken about building his own career rather than trying to replicate another player’s path, while continuing to cite Messi as the standard he admires most.
