New Delhi: Barcelona president Joan Laporta has made the revelation that the Spanish club has turned down an offer worth USD 270 million (€250 million) for star forward Lamine Yamal six months ago.
Though Laporta did not reveal the name of the club who wanted to sign the young Spaniard, it was reported that PSG were willing to splash out heavily on Yamal to sign him as Kylian Mbappe’s replacement.
“They came to me to sign Lamine for 250 million euros and I said no six months ago. He is the most popular player in the world. What is Lamine’s real value?” Laporta told Barca One.
Yamal’s value has gone through the roof since he burst onto the scene. His rapid rise to prominence began when he started training with Barca’s first team at just 15 years old, at the request of coach Xavi Hernandez. He made his debut for the first team in April 2023, becoming the youngest player ever to represent the club.
After an impressive 2022/23 campaign, Lamine continued with the first team for preseason in 2023/24 and became a regular presence in the squad. He set multiple records for the club, including being the youngest player to reach 50 appearances. The teenage forward also became the second youngest player to score in the Champions League history last month.
On an international level, Lamine became the youngest player ever to play for the Spanish national side and their youngest ever goalscorer. In the summer of 2024, he also became the youngest player ever to appear in the European Championships when he started for Spain against Croatia at the age of 16 years and 338 days.
The winger set more records on his way to victory in the final against England, amongst them becoming the youngest player ever to appear in a major tournament final.
Laporta further told the first-team squad that anyone who wants to leave needs to bring a decent offer.
“We did not want to sell, we thought we had to keep the team, which could give much more than it gave. I think we were not completely wrong, Flick is getting a lot out of it. Gündogan left and Olmo came. The players are performing much better than last year. Raphinha and Lewandowski have changed their faces.
“Whoever wants to leave should bring an offer for what they are worth and we will always study it. As Johan said, whoever plays here has to want to be here,” he said. IANS
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