‘Hopefully Yes’—Lamine Yamal Makes Major Barcelona Pledge Amid Career Year

Barcelona’s No. 10 is already one of the best players in the world at just 18 years old.

Lamine Yamal bleeds Blaugrana. | Bruno Penas/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images

Lamine Yamal has the potential to become a generational player that marks an era in the sport, and the 18-year-old revealed he wants to do so spending his entire career at Barcelona, or as he described it, “the best club in the world.”

The electrifying teenager is arguably the best player to come out of Barcelona’s famous La Masia since Lionel Messi nearly 20 years ago. Still only 18 years old, Yamal is already in the conversation of being the best player in the world.

No player in the world currently has greater potential than Yamal, and during Mundo Deportivo’s annual “Gran Gala,” Barcelona’s No. 10 made a pledge, revealing he wants to continue donning the Blaugrana shirt for the rest of his career.

My name is Lamine Yamal, I scored and I do love FC Barcelona pic.twitter.com/8T1CmX27yY

— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) February 3, 2026

“Yes, hopefully yes [I can retire at Barcelona],” Yamal admitted. “In the end, I think I’m at the best club in the world, I enjoy every day very much, every training session. I’m in the best city in the world and hopefully I can stay here my whole life.”

Yamal signed a lucrative new contract upon coming of age valid until the summer of 2031. Incredibly, the Ballon d’Or runner-up will be only 23-years-old when his current contract expires.

He’s become the face of Barcelona in the post-Messi era, and the scary thing is that Yamal still has room for improvement.

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Hansi Flick Believes Yamal Can Reach ‘Another Level’

Hansi Flick (left) has been crucial for Lamine Yamal’s development. | David Ramirez/Soccrates/Getty Images

Hansi Flick has been essential for Yamal to reach his current level, playing a key role in the teenager’s development over the past 18 months. The German boss is delighted with his star winger’s recent form, but he believes there’s still another level he can unlock.

“It’s always important for the club when he [Yamal] plays at a top level,” Flick said over the weekend. “I think he’s young enough to improve, to have potential, to reach another level. And I think it happens, I think it happens.

“I’m really happy with the situation about him, because he’s not only focused on the offense, also in the defense. I always say this, it’s very good and he’s very important for us.”

Despite the praise, Flick has tried to somewhat temper the hype surrounding Yamal, constantly opting to speak about the overall quality of the team whenever he’s asked specifically about the 18-year-old star.

But as hard as Flick might try to quiet the noise, Yamal’s performances on the pitch, especially since the turn of the year, have deservedly stolen headlines.

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Yamal Currently Having a Career Year

Yamal has had a blistering start of 2026. | Gongora/NurPhoto/Getty Images

A nagging groin injury plus off-field controversies defined Yamal’s early season, which prompted loud criticism that said he was distracted and nowhere near the level he showed a season ago. Quietly, though, Yamal never stopped producing, and now he’s very much in the midst of the best season of his short career.

Through 29 appearances in all competitions for Barcelona this season, Yamal has racked up 14 goals and 13 assists. Plus, no player in Europe’s top five leagues has completed more successful dribbles than him—and it’s not particularly close.

He’s already matched his best goalscoring tally in La Liga with nine, and there’s still almost half a season left to play. But he’s gotten even better since the turn of the year, and he’s registered seven goal contributions in his last six appearances in all competitions, looking unplayable at times and like the best player on the pitch more often than not.

Back to full health, Yamal is making Flick seem like a prophet as he takes the next step in his development right in front of our eyes. Statistical output is starting to match what the eye-test tells us, adding decisiveness and tangible impact to his showman style.

Yamal’s success this term will be measured by silverware come the summer, but at his current level, he could be the biggest-difference maker in Barcelona‘s Champions League charge and Spain’s World Cup hopes. A triumphant summer could easily see him become the youngest Ballon d’Or winner in history before the end of the year.

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