FC Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal thanked the club’s former coach, Xavi, for giving him the opportunity to make his debut with the Blaugrana last season.
The Spanish international spoke after leading Barça to a 2-0 victory over Espanyol on Thursday. The 17-year-old player scored the opening goal for his team before his teammate Fermin Lopez sealed the win late in the game. This victory allowed the Catalans to be crowned Spanish champions for the 28th time in their history.
After the match, Yamal emphasized that without Xavi, he would not have won the title. “I would like to thank Xavi; without him, this would not have been possible,” Yamal said after the match, as quoted by Fabrizio Romano. “He gave us young players the opportunity to make our debuts. I would like to thank him,” he added.
Xavi is a legend of Barcelona who played for the Catalan club as a player and also coached it in the past.