Spain’s Lamine Yamal embraced a tearful Lionel Messi at full time in a moment that felt deeply symbolic, like a passing of the torch.
Messi, at 39, stared long and hard at Argentina’s supporters packed around the New York New Jersey Stadium as they sang his name, perhaps for the final time at a World Cup.
It was Yamal who offered the Argentina icon consolation before the two fell into each other’s arms, Barcelona’s number 10 embracing their most legendary number 10.
The moment echoed a famous 2007 charity calendar photograph showing a 20-year-old Messi bathing a six-month-old Lamine Yamal, an image that went viral again in the build-up to the final.
Two decades younger than Messi and still in the infancy of his career, Yamal has effectively completed international football by lifting the World Cup just two years after winning the Euros when Spain beat England.
He became the youngest player, at 19 years and six days, to win both the World Cup and the European Championship, achieving that feat despite entering the tournament carrying a hamstring injury.
Yamal has yet to lose a competitive match for Spain across his 28 appearances, having started 13 games at major tournaments and won every single one, the longest 100% win rate of any European player across major tournaments when starting.
He also joined 19-year-old team-mate Pau Cubarsi as only the fourth and fifth teenagers to start a World Cup final and win, following Pele in 1958, Giuseppe Bergomi in 1982, and Kylian Mbappe in 2018.
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente expressed his “sincere gratitude” to Yamal after the final, adding: “He has played great football that will help him to mature and be even a greater footballer than he already is.”
De la Fuente added: “He really sacrificed for the collective good. This is very important in my squad. In my opinion he played a great World Cup.”
Former England goalkeeper and BBC Sport pundit Joe Hart was equally effusive, stating: “Not only did Lamine Yamal not react, he stood up to it. He was not rattled and he did not back down. He had the entire team trying to smash him.”
Hart continued: “He just stayed real cool. It was a real standout performance from him. Lamine Yamal is 19 years old. What a beautiful day for him. He’s 19 and has completed football.”
Argentina’s approach provided the sharpest contrast to Spain’s fluency, with the South American side becoming the first team in World Cup history not to register a single shot in 90 minutes of a final.
In a shocking first half, Argentina committed more fouls than passes in the final third of the pitch, nine fouls compared to just eight passes, which entirely summed up their provocative and destructive approach.
Enzo Fernandez’s senseless charge on Cubarsi just before extra time, earning a deserved second yellow card, underlined how badly Argentina had betrayed Messi’s genius and influence throughout the contest.
Messi’s only shot came in the 117th minute and flew off target, while Spain registered 12 shots on target across the entire game as Ferran Torres scored the decisive goal in the 106th minute.
Argentina coach Lionel Scaloni became highly emotional when asked whether this was Messi’s final World Cup game, eventually breaking into tears himself before leaving the news conference without finishing his answer.
The final did not end cleanly either, with Leandro Paredes grabbing Eric Garcia by the throat after the whistle, and Spain’s Gavi also thrown to the ground in ugly scenes that tarnished an otherwise outstanding World Cup.
With captain and player of the tournament Rodri alongside him, and virtually his entire career still ahead of him, Yamal will surely add to this collection of honours before he is done.
Messi’s unforgettable World Cup era may now be over, but the Lamine Yamal years look set to define international football for a very long time to come.
