Lamine Yamal raises Barcelona's concerns after El Clásico

Young winger Lamine Yamal raised concerns at Barcelona after his participation in the 2-1 El Clásico defeat to Real Madrid, despite suffering from a chronic adductor injury from which he has not fully recovered. According to a report in The Athletic, sources within the Catalan club confirmed that Yamal's injury is not minor, and that the player will need to adapt to recurring pain in the coming period. This may explain his poor performance in the match, as he touched the ball 79 times without a single shot on target and lost possession 22 times. Yamal's problems were not limited to the physical aspect; he also found himself at the center of an off-field controversy following comments he made during a live broadcast before the match, in which he described Real Madrid players as "complainers and thieves," in reference to Barcelona's emphatic 4-0 victory last season. Although the player insisted his comments were meant as a joke, they still angered Real Madrid players before the match. After the final whistle, tensions flared again when Real Madrid captain Dani Carvajal refused to shake hands with Yamal and gestured angrily at him. A brief confrontation ensued, with Thibaut Courtois and Eduardo Camavinga stepping in to calm the situation, while Rafinha intervened to contain the situation after Vinicius Junior also tried to confront the young star. Yamal's teammates, however, came to his defense, with Frenkie de Jong criticizing Carvajal's behavior, calling it "excessive," and pointing out that Yamal is still learning how to deal with the pressure of fans and big matches.