‘He pulls magic from golden feet’: Raphinha hails Lamine Yamal’s superhuman impact in title charge

Yamal’s teammate Raphinha also lauded him. “We didn’t have many clear chances but we have a kid in there who sometimes pulls something out of the golden feet he has and he gave us peace of mind to stay in the game more calmly,” Raphinha said about Yamal, who took the ball on the right touchline and made a superb lateral run across the edge of the box before unleashing a curling strike between two defenders and into the top corner to break the deadlock early in the second half.

“In January some people were saying we would fight to be third. We have confidence in ourselves. That’s the key. We trust in the work and in what we know we can do,” said Raphinha. 

Raphinha has scored 18 league goals this season, including a brace in Saturday’s crucial 4-3 win over Real Madrid, and was quick to credit the trust shown in him by coach Hansi Flick. The Brazilian tripled his goal tally from last season and also has the third-highest number of assists in the competition with nine, three less than leader Yamal.

“The most important thing was the confidence of the coach. Knowing at the start of the season that he was counting on me, a person who controls the team … it changes you in the end,” he said. 

Yamal also credited Flick for the team’s success. He said, “We are very grateful to Xavi because without him, none of this would have happened. He gave many young players the chance to debut, and I want to thank him from here.”