Luis de la Fuente demands Ballon d’Or recognition for Spain stars and tips Lamine Yamal for future glory

De la Fuente praised the immense talent of Yamal, voicing full confidence that the Barcelona prodigy possesses every attribute required to claim football’s most prestigious individual accolade.

Championing homegrown quality, the manager stated: “I always back domestic talent, the ‘Brand Spain’; we are world-class in terms of development, performance, and quality. Off the top of my head, I’d say Mikel Oyarzabal is missing from the nominees list – whoever had to write down the names must have dropped the paper on the floor and left him out.”

Assessing Yamal’s trajectory, he added: “I think Lamine Yamal can win the Ballon d’Or because he is Spanish and an incredible footballer. If it’s not this year, it will be in the future; I don’t think it will take him too long to win it. I see him doing very well at the start of this season, and we want to enjoy him for many years to come.”