Lamine Yamal has dismissed Barcelona boss Hansi Flick’s insinuation that egos were threatening to derail their bid to retain the Liga title.
Barca were held to a 1-1 draw at Rayo Vallecano at the weekend – Yamal putting the visitors ahead from the spot – but were grateful to goalkeeper Joan Garcia for preserving a point with a string of superb saves.
Afterwards a clearly unimpressed Flick told his news conference: “The most important thing is that, once the transfer window is closed, everyone is 100 per cent committed to this club. No egos, because egos kill success. Last season, we played as one unit. We have to be like this again.”
Flick rages at Barcelona players
The Athletic reported that message was also conveyed to the players in the dressing room in stronger terms.
Yamal admitted Barca were not at their best at Vallecas but does not believe it was due to the players believing their own hype.
He told RTVE: “I think it has more to do with the fact that we did not start the season with the intensity with which we ended the previous one, more than with egos in the dressing room.
“After a draw you get a bit of heat, in the end you have to win. We have taken seven points out of nine in very difficult stadiums. He [Flick] is right that we did not play well, but it can happen. You have to recover the level as soon as possible, it was not due to egos.”
Barca have played their first three league games of the season away from home while they wait for the renovated Camp Nou to be completed.
A return, therefore, of two wins and a draw should not be dismissed and Yamal says there is great determination to go back to back.
He added: “We want more because we didn’t come from winning four Champions Leagues or four La Ligas in a row, we are very young. The league is very long, we have to be consistent.”
I only listen to people close to me – Yamal
Yamal has attracted some unwanted attention this summer after reportedly going on holiday with an OnlyFans star 12 years his senior and inviting a team of dwarves to perform at his 18th birthday party.
There were suggestions the Barca hierarchy were concerned the Spain international was becoming distracted by his new-found fame, although it did not stop the club tying Yamal down to a new, six-year contract.
And the Ballon d’Or candidate reiterated his claim that he does not listen to the critics.
“Lately, people talk more about what I do off the field than what I do on it,” he said. “But they talk about me because of what I have done.
“If I played at Mataro [the town where he grew up], my birthday party wouldn’t have that impact.
“What they say doesn’t affect me. I have already realised that everything that happens in my life will be talked about and that many times it is invented. I don’t care much, in the end I already said it on the day of my renewal, both for the good and for the bad, I only listen to my circle because they are the ones who really know things and what matters.
“It is in my favour and that helps me a lot because you will never hear that Lamine is sad or happy about something that someone else has said. I follow my path, I continue with my mentality that I believe is what has brought me here.”
Yamal is currently away with the Spain squad and will be a key member of Luis de la Fuente’s squad as they face trips to Bulgaria and Turkey in World Cup qualifying over the next week.
