An outstanding candidate

Lamine Yamal is the great contradiction. On the one hand, I think he is the outstanding candidate to win the coveted Ballon d'Or; on the other I want people to stop hyping him up.

I'm concerned that he will suffer burnout and should be used sparingly. However, I want him to be selected for every Barcelona game that I'm assigned to broadcast. See what I mean?

With young Lamine, commentators and defenders must be constantly at the top of our game.

Even when he made his debut, we almost got caught out. An unfamiliar name appeared on the substitutes list for a game with Real Betis in April 2023. It isn't unusual for a B team player to be drafted into make up the numbers with little chance of getting onto the field. Luckily, I did some last-minute prep' on a 15-year-old who was already represented by super-agent Jorge Mendes. Although his appearance was a cameo, he exploded into the game with some incredible skills.

Since then, he's won La Liga twice, the Copa del Rey and the Supercopa. He was voted the best young player when winning Euro 2024 with Spain and honoured with the Kopa Trophy for the best player under the age of 21 last year.

There's plenty of debate about who leads the race to be crowned the best player in the world for 2025. For me, Yamal is the outstanding candidate. He's produced for club and country. He dazzles week in and week out and consistently pulls things off that no other player on the planet can accomplish. Inter Milan coach Simeone Inzaghi said a talent like his emerges only every 50 years.

It was a slight exaggeration bearing in mind who he's followed. This week, he took on the iconic Barça number ten shirt associated with Lionel Messi and Ronaldinho.

This was the ultimate 18th birthday present. What else could a boy who'd just become a man with a new 15m-euro per year contract want.

Alas, now a man, he becomes the subject of front as well as back-page news. It was concerning to see he'd invited YouTubers and influencers as well as team-mates to his special birthday bash.

More concerning was the negative publicity around the engagement of entertainers with dwarfism for the event. One of the performers said: "We entertain, we dance, we distribute drinks, we do magic. I don't understand why there's so much hype."

This didn't stop Spain's General Director of Disability launching an investigation into the gathering.

It's the first negative publicity for a young man who has handled the instant fame with a beautiful grin. He's taken on Messi's number and hopefully inherited his cool demeanour.

He plays football with a smile on his face. Making the Catalan and Spanish people happy.

My wish is that he wins the Ballon d'Or but remains humble; that he isn't over-played but takes centre stage for every major game that I have the honour to work on, and that his 21st birthday attracts little attention.