Are they scared? The French are trying to put Spain’s 16-year-old sensation under pressure: Yamal needs to show more if he wants to play the final

The semi-finals of EURO 2024 kick off on Tuesday evening, pitting Spain and France against each other. One of the driving forces of the Spanish team is 16-year-old Lamine Yamal. The opponents have so far been unable to nullify him on the pitch and the French are trying to unsettle him before the game. Are they afraid of him?

• Spain and France kick off the semi-final programme
• Lamine Yamal once again one of the main faces of his team
• The French are trying to intimidate him

At just 16 years old, he is understandably playing in his first European Championship. And he certainly didn’t come to Germany just to soak up the atmosphere. On the contrary. Lamine Yamal is one of Spain’s driving forces across the championship. Together with Nico Williams, they keep the opposition’s defences busy and are among the best players not only of their team, but of the whole Euro.

Although the Barcelona gem is waiting for his first goal, he has already had a couple of chances. Besides, he shines in another statistic. Assists. He’s already got three. More than any other player in the tournament. Phenomenal.

No wonder he’ s being compared to the legendary Lionel Messi. His opponents take him seriously. Even the best. After all, even coach Julian Nagelsmann talked a lot about the Spanish sensation before the game, saying that his players will test him and shouldn’t be without a chance.

However, it was against the Germans that Yamal notched one of his three assists. He was one of the best players on the set. And he clearly has the respect of the French, Spain’s semi-final opponent. They’re trying to upset him before the game.

Yamal scares the French, they try to put him under pressure

France have a great team. They have stars in attack, midfield, defence and goal. Players like Kylian Mbappé, Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembélé are expected to be among the main faces of the championship. But all of them are overshadowed by the young Lamine Yamal.

Overall, the French are facing criticism. They are the first in history to reach the semi-finals without scoring a goal from play. So far they have only scored from penalties or their opponents have scored an own goal. Apart from that, the play of Didier Deschamps’ charges cannot even entertain French fans.

They rely on pragmatism, on a certain defensiveness. Now they will face Spain, the best-playing team in the championship, who could test France. And Yamal doesn’t seem to be letting them sleep completely easy either.

“Lamine handles the pressure well, he has great quality. He is capable of playing at club level and at a tournament this big. But to make it to the semi-finals is always tough. It will be up to us. We have to put pressure on him. We can’t let him get comfortable.We need toshow him that to play in the final he will have to do more than what he has done so far,” said Adrien Rabiot, 13 years older than the Spanish sensation, before the match.

Yamal responded with a post on Instagram, where he posted a photo with a quote that read, “Move quietly, speak only when it’s time to say checkmate.”

Coach Luis de la Fuente also spoke out about Rabiot’s statement. “The referee is in the game to make sure no one crosses the red line. Lamine must understand that even statements like that, psychological games and intimidation, are part of football,” Marca quotes him as saying.

Source: Marca, UEFA