{"id":41445,"date":"2025-04-18T20:52:17","date_gmt":"2025-04-18T19:52:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/?p=41445"},"modified":"2025-07-18T15:51:37","modified_gmt":"2025-07-18T14:51:37","slug":"lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/","title":{"rendered":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Barcelona legend Lionel Messi left an irreplaceable mark in Barcelona. It seemed like no one would ever fill the void that was created when he had to depart the club. However, as per the legend&rsquo;s own words, a youngster currently playing at Barca is going in the right direction.<\/p><p>Messi lavished praise on teenage sensation Lamine Yamal, who continues to shine for the Catalan giants. Speaking to Simplemente Futbol, the Argentine icon reflected on Yamal&rsquo;s meteoric rise. He also suggested that he sees shades of himself in the young star.<\/p><figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-rich is-provider-twitter wp-block-embed-twitter\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<blockquote class=\"twitter-tweet\" data-width=\"500\" data-dnt=\"true\"><p lang=\"en\" dir=\"ltr\">&#128680; Leo Messi: &ldquo;It&rsquo;s impressive what Lamine Yamal shows&hellip; he&rsquo;s already been a Euro champion with Spain&rdquo;.<br><br>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s still only 17, he&rsquo;s in a growth process, and he&rsquo;ll continue to grow as a player and add things to his game, just like I did. He has incredible qualities and he&rsquo;s already&hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/t.co\/KbGzmgjqNC\" class=\"trk-cta-link\" data-cta-trk='{\"ctaType\":\"Link\",\"ctaSubType\":\"main\"}'>pic.twitter.com\/KbGzmgjqNC<\/a><\/p>&mdash; Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) <a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/FabrizioRomano\/status\/1913110249827127371?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw\" class=\"trk-cta-link\" data-cta-trk='{\"ctaType\":\"Link\",\"ctaSubType\":\"main\"}'>April 18, 2025<\/a><\/blockquote><script async src=\"https:\/\/platform.twitter.com\/widgets.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script>\n<\/div><\/figure><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">&lsquo;Just as I Started&rsquo; &ndash; Messi Finds Similarity in Growth<\/h2><p>Talking about Yamal, Messi told Simplemente Futbol, <em>&ldquo;It&rsquo;s impressive. What he&rsquo;s showing, what he&rsquo;s doing, what he&rsquo;s done is impressive. He was already a European champion. He&rsquo;s still 17, he&rsquo;s in the process of growth, and I think he&rsquo;s going to grow even more as a player.&rdquo;<\/em><\/p><p>He added, <em>&ldquo;He&rsquo;s going to add things to his game. Just as I started, he also started on the right. Maybe in a few years he&rsquo;ll end up playing differently too,&rdquo; he added, before concluding: &ldquo;There&rsquo;s no doubt he has barbaric skills; today he&rsquo;s already one of the best in the world.&rdquo;<\/em><\/p><p><strong>Also Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-set-to-sign-new-contract-extension-with-inter-miami\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" class=\"trk-cta-link\" data-cta-trk='{\"ctaType\":\"Link\",\"ctaSubType\":\"main\"}'>Lionel Messi Set To Sign New Contract Extension With Inter Miami<\/a><\/strong><\/p><p>The praise comes after Yamal&rsquo;s extraordinary year. This included the 17-year-old becoming the youngest player to score in LaLiga and the youngest to feature in the Euros. The Barcelona winger played a key role in Spain&rsquo;s UEFA Euro 2024 win. He also won the tournament&rsquo;s Young Player award.<\/p><h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">La Masia product continues to soar<\/h2><p>Yamal is a graduate of Barcelona&rsquo;s famous La Masia academy that produced Messi. Yamal has already made 45 appearances for Barcelona this season. He has contributed 14 goals and 21 assists in that span. As a result, he has become a cornerstone of Hansi Flick&rsquo;s high-flying Barca side.<\/p><p><strong>Also Read: <a href=\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/raphinha-primed-to-finish-as-top-scorer-in-uefa-champions-league-full-list-of-odds-for-all-players-to-win-the-prize\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" class=\"trk-cta-link\" data-cta-trk='{\"ctaType\":\"Link\",\"ctaSubType\":\"main\"}'>Raphinha primed to finish as top-scorer in 2024-25 UEFA Champions League: Full list of odds for all players to win the prize<\/a><\/strong><\/p><p>Combining brilliantly with captain Raphinha on the wings and Robert Lewandowski in the middle, they&rsquo;ve formed a partnership as good as Messi, Suarez and Neymar. Yamal is not only catching the attention of Messi, but he has also caught the attention of another footballing great &ndash; Cristiano Ronaldo.&nbsp;<\/p><p>In a recent interview with Rio Ferdinand, Ronaldo remarked, <em>&ldquo;I see a lot of talent in Lamine Yamal&hellip; I think he will be one of the best in this generation, surely.&rdquo;<\/em> With <a href=\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/barcelona-vs-inter-milan-tickets-where-to-buy-prices-and-more-details\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" class=\"trk-cta-link\" data-cta-trk='{\"ctaType\":\"Link\",\"ctaSubType\":\"main\"}'>Barcelona<\/a> eyeing a treble this season, Yamal could be on the verge of etching his name into footballing history before he even turns 19 years of age.<\/p>\n<div class=\"mm-layout mm-layout-type-post mm-layout-slot4\">\n<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Lionel Messi Hails This Barcelona Star As \u2018Already One of the Best in the World\u2019 and Draws Parallels With His Own Journey.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_mux_skip_reasons":[],"footnotes":""},"categories":[4038],"tags":[1555,661,4488,663],"class_list":["post-41445","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-soccer","tag-barcelona","tag-inter-miami","tag-lamine-yamal","tag-lionel-messi"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: &lsquo;Just Like Me&rsquo; - The Playoffs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him &lsquo;one of the best in the world&rsquo; and compares the teen&#039;s rise to his own legendary start.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: &lsquo;Just Like Me&rsquo; - The Playoffs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him &lsquo;one of the best in the world&rsquo; and compares the teen&#039;s rise to his own legendary start.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Playoffs\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-07-18T15:51:37+01:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Moumita Dutta\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@ThePlayoffsEN\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@ThePlayoffsEN\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Moumita Dutta\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"NewsArticle\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Moumita Dutta\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d37ae651493a7d6ce243f868d2d97829\"},\"headline\":\"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-18T19:52:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-18T14:51:37+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\"},\"wordCount\":475,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization\"},\"keywords\":[\"Barcelona\",\"Inter Miami\",\"Lamine Yamal\",\"Lionel Messi\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Soccer\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"copyrightYear\":\"2025\",\"copyrightHolder\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization\"}},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\",\"name\":\"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019 - The Playoffs\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-04-18T19:52:17+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-07-18T14:51:37+00:00\",\"description\":\"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him \u2018one of the best in the world\u2019 and compares the teen\\\\'s rise to his own legendary start.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/\",\"name\":\"The Playoffs\",\"description\":\"Share passion for sports &amp; betting\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization\",\"name\":\"The Playoffs\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/selo-tp-2020-415x280-1.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/selo-tp-2020-415x280-1.webp\",\"width\":415,\"height\":280,\"caption\":\"The Playoffs\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/x.com\/ThePlayoffsEN\",\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/theplayoffs_en\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d37ae651493a7d6ce243f868d2d97829\",\"name\":\"Moumita Dutta\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e1896e2a649806d3b280ef7ab16fa7a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e1896e2a649806d3b280ef7ab16fa7a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Moumita Dutta\"},\"description\":\"Football writer at The Playoffs. I\u2019ve been obsessed with the beautiful game since I was a kid.. Eventually, I realized I could combine my passion for writing with my love for football, and I\u2019ve never looked back. My favorite part of the job is everything\u2014when you\u2019re doing what you love, even a late-night deadline feels like extra time in a thrilling cup final. Lastly, Lionel Messi is the GOAT. \u00a0\",\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mou_leo_dutta\/\"],\"url\":\"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/author\/moumita\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: &lsquo;Just Like Me&rsquo; - The Playoffs","description":"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him &lsquo;one of the best in the world&rsquo; and compares the teen&#039;s rise to his own legendary start.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: &lsquo;Just Like Me&rsquo; - The Playoffs","og_description":"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him &lsquo;one of the best in the world&rsquo; and compares the teen&#039;s rise to his own legendary start.","og_url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/","og_site_name":"The Playoffs","article_modified_time":"2025-07-18T14:51:37+00:00","author":"Moumita Dutta","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@ThePlayoffsEN","twitter_site":"@ThePlayoffsEN","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Moumita Dutta","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/"},"author":{"name":"Moumita Dutta","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d37ae651493a7d6ce243f868d2d97829"},"headline":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019","datePublished":"2025-04-18T19:52:17+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-18T14:51:37+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/"},"wordCount":475,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization"},"keywords":["Barcelona","Inter Miami","Lamine Yamal","Lionel Messi"],"articleSection":["Soccer"],"inLanguage":"en-US","copyrightYear":"2025","copyrightHolder":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization"}},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/","url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/","name":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019 - The Playoffs","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-04-18T19:52:17+00:00","dateModified":"2025-07-18T14:51:37+00:00","description":"Lionel Messi praises Barcelona youngster, calling him \u2018one of the best in the world\u2019 and compares the teen\\'s rise to his own legendary start.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/lionel-messi-says-this-barcelona-youngster-started-right-just-like-me\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lionel Messi Says This Barcelona Youngster Started Right: \u2018Just Like Me\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/","name":"The Playoffs","description":"Share passion for sports &amp; betting","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#organization","name":"The Playoffs","url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/selo-tp-2020-415x280-1.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/selo-tp-2020-415x280-1.webp","width":415,"height":280,"caption":"The Playoffs"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/x.com\/ThePlayoffsEN","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/theplayoffs_en\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/d37ae651493a7d6ce243f868d2d97829","name":"Moumita Dutta","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e1896e2a649806d3b280ef7ab16fa7a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e1896e2a649806d3b280ef7ab16fa7a4?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Moumita Dutta"},"description":"Football writer at The Playoffs. I\u2019ve been obsessed with the beautiful game since I was a kid.. Eventually, I realized I could combine my passion for writing with my love for football, and I\u2019ve never looked back. My favorite part of the job is everything\u2014when you\u2019re doing what you love, even a late-night deadline feels like extra time in a thrilling cup final. Lastly, Lionel Messi is the GOAT. \u00a0","sameAs":["https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/mou_leo_dutta\/"],"url":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/author\/moumita\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41445"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/30"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=41445"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41445\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41449,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/41445\/revisions\/41449"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=41445"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=41445"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/theplayoffs.news\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=41445"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}