New Delhi, July 23 — Former Barcelona striker Robert Lewandowski believes Lamine Yamal was unable to showcase his best football during Spain’s triumphant FIFA World Cup campaign because of the injury setback that disrupted his preparations.
Poland's captain said the teenage winger entered the tournament short on match fitness after spending nearly two months on the sidelines, making it difficult for him to hit top form immediately.
“Honestly, no, we didn’t see his best this tournament. For me, the best version of Lamine was two seasons ago. He’s still very young, and he came to the World Cup after an injury. He hadn’t played for around eight weeks, so it’s very difficult to return straight into a tournament like the World Cup,” Lewandowski told ESPN.
“When you don’t play for eight weeks, and then you start at the World Cup, you don’t really have time to train because it’s one match after another. Even then, he showed great quality. The Spain players helped Lamine, and Lamine also helped the team. That partnership worked perfectly,” he added.
Yamal travelled to the World Cup after recovering from a hamstring problem that had ruled him out towards the end of Barcelona’s domestic season. Spain coach Luis de la Fuente carefully managed the youngster’s workload in the early stages of the tournament before gradually increasing his involvement.
The 19-year-old featured in all eight of Spain’s matches, scoring once and emerging as one of the tournament’s most dangerous attacking players. He also completed a competition-leading 35 successful dribbles as Spain defeated Portugal, France and Argentina on their way to lifting the World Cup trophy.
Lewandowski, whose Poland side did not qualify for the tournament, also revealed that he supported Spain in the final because of the strong relationships he built with several members of the squad during his time at Barcelona.
“I know many of the Spain players because we spent a lot of time together at Barcelona, so it was natural for me to support them,” he said.
“I only know Leo (Messi) personally from Argentina, and he had already won the previous World Cup. I was happy for Spain because I knew they were ready to become champions. They have a very young squad and a bright future ahead of them,” he added.