‘Majestic,’ ‘mesmerizing,’ ‘a genius’: How the soccer world reacted to 17-year-old Lamine Yamal’s performance against Inter

After a spectacular performance on Wednesday against Inter Milan in the Champions League semifinals, people are asking: is Lamine Yamal the best player in the world?

Lamine Yamal is still only 17 years old, didn’t you know? The chances are you’ve heard that a lot recently, especially over the past 24 hours following his sumptuous performance against Inter Milan in the Champions League. But it really does bear repeating because what Yamal is doing at 17 is not normal. And you’ll probably be hearing it a lot more until July 13, when he turns 18. Even Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo, by far the two best players of their generation, didn’t even come close to touching the heights Yamal has already. This stat will give you some idea as to just how far Yamal is along in his development. At 17, Messi had played in nine matches, scored one goal and provided zero assists. Ronaldo had five goals and four assists in 19 matches. Yamal? 100 matches, 22 goals and 33 assists.