Article by Aurelian Botezatu – Published Tuesday, February 10, 2026, 1:34 p.m. / Updated Tuesday, February 10, 2026, 1:40 p.m.
Spanish international Lamine Yamal (18 years old) claims that outside the field he tries to think as little as possible about football.
For Barcelona's pearl, the life of a professional player does not mean “football 24 hours a day”. In an interview given to the American television channel ESPN, Lamine Yamal said that he does not study his direct opponents that he is going to meet, and off the field he is looking to lead a life as close as possible to that of a young man his age.
Lamine Yamal: “I want to disconnect from football as much as possible”
“I do what any 18-year-old does. I go out with my friends, take care of my brother, play video games, go for walks… things like that,” admitted the Barcelona winger. In his opinion, this is essential to live quietly and as far as possible away from the attention of the media.
Lamine: “I try to be with my friends and live my life. I try not to focus exclusively on football, not to be constantly focused on the match or watch videos of the fullback I'm going to face, none of that. When I'm on the field I give everything, but when I leave the field I want to disconnect from football as much as possible”.
Lamine Yamal: “I couldn't afford a PlayStation when I was little. We played Pokemon cards at school”
Asked what he would do if he were invisible for a day, he answered with disarming honesty: “First, I would go to have breakfast somewhere on a terrace. In the afternoon, I would play a football match in a park, for example at the Rocafonda sports center. And then I would go for a bike ride or a scooter ride with my friends. Normal things”.
From his not so distant childhood, Lamine Yamal has no memories of Play Station or Nintendo. “We couldn't afford that. So me and my friends would play in the school yard with Pokémon cards, which cost one euro,” revealed Lamine, for whom the kitchen is an impossible field: “I tried to cook but quickly gave up because it's not for me. I was very bad, very bad. At most I can make some potato nuggets”.
