Looking at Lamine Yamal against Inter Milan this week, nobody should be so good at the age of 17. It's just wrong!
My tongue is placed firmly in the cheek, but it is not to be denied that we are looking at the rise of a very special talent. He has already played 100 first team matches and he is only 18 to July.
I said similar things last summer when I first saw him for Spain at the European Championship and what is encouraging is that he continued to improve. He has the potential, and I say that in bold and capital letters potential, to be one of the biggest ever.
What is hard to understand for someone his age is not just his talent or athletics, it is his decision -making on the football field. He makes decisions that you would expect from a player, much further than his years.
Trevor Francis was one of the best young players I've ever seen. He tore up at the age of 16 in the first team of Birmingham City. This boy made his debut for Barcelona at the age of 15. He has been surpassed at the same age about Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi. Add the fact that he enjoys the discipline to also do the hard yards and he looks like a thorough good kind from far.
He will of course be rewarded well, but in the future he will get a lot of attention. The difficulty is maintaining that sober. Make sure that a school day stays every day and that you always come to work and want to learn.
He is lucky that he is in a club like Barcelona, ​​where it is not their first rodeo when producing young stars and then manages. They tend to keep them grounded in contrast to Manchester United Post-Sir Alex Ferguson, for example, where the heads of young players blow away with admiration and pressure.
Yamal doesn't even have to look too far to see an example of how things can start unraveling. Looking at Jude Bellingham in Real Madrid of recent times has been the relevant. He had an incredible first season in Spain, looked like a battle, but now I am afraid it seems like he is no longer listening.
I hope I am wrong. But this year has been a disappointment and you must question part of Bellingham's behavior, show different opinions, unnecessarily get into trouble with referees.
When he listens to someone, their advice looks misleading. And if he puts this attitude on what he thinks that over -sexes are passion, he is also mistaken. It is a perfect example of what Yamal should avoid.
Earning too much money, so that you become immune to the right people and attract all the wrong species. There is a litany of others in comparable circumstances that went for them.
What could be worse than having all that talent and then waking up at the age of 30 and to think about yourself: 'How did I waste all that? What if I had listened carefully and had applied myself better? '
It is of course not only Bellingham, but I would not like to see him continue like this. He has to watch videos of what he did not do well. I hate it to harbor about it, but that is the value of having good senior professionals in the area. Those who have seen the signs earlier and who straighten you.
I am sure that at clubs such as Real Madrid and Barcelona there are much of it worth listening. The message will never believe that you are too wise to stop learning and listening.
Money spoken in Europe this week
Results in the Europa League on Thursday mean that it is a very real prospect that six English teams will participate in the Champions League next season.
But that should not be a surprise for the richest competition in the world. The largest indicator is what we spend on transfer costs.
We are lucky here, with the product we have, and the TV money that we can buy the best players.
In general, if you look along the competition table, the team that spends the most on wages is usually at the top. It did not suddenly happen. We do not produce the best coaches or the best players, we are top of the tree because most of the money is spent here.
The Premier League spent £ 2.19 billion last summer. To bring that into the context, Serie A was the next closest biggest spender at £ 990 million, while La Liga spent £ 506 million.
In my match days, clubs such as Liverpool could not compete financially with the Germans or Italians. That is why Real Madrid and Javier Tebas, the president of Laliga, are not so happy now.
Sir Jim Ratcliffe said that Champions League football will be worth £ 100 million for Manchester United. Their result on Thursday was the excellent at night. Few expected 3-0 score, but United should approach the return game that they saw the worst version of Athletic Bilbao in the San Mames.
The Spaniards will be brushed to make up for Old Trafford and United will have to be focused to earn a place in the final, you would expect, against Tottenham.
How Arsenal Masters can be of Paris
Next week Paris Saint-Germain will not go beyond Arsenal.
The French are not a side that will be a 1-0 lead, their manager will not accept that and their supporters will not. That can open a chance for Arsenal to exploit. We have seen a vulnerability for PSG when they were put under pressure by Aston Villa and Arsenal will have viewed that.
The side of Mikel Arteta was extremely positive with the Emirates. They went on the front foot, but PSG, as all the top edges in this competition show, only need one temporary decay in concentration or one misplaced pass, and they are on you.
People have criticized Declan Rice for leaving the gap for the goal of Ousmane Dembele, but you need support from your teammates in these games, as one and giving coverage.
The finger was also pointed to the drop-off of Martin Odegaard in shape, but their undoing in these situations is their transmission on set pieces. It is regularly emphasized how their set piece 'Guru' Nicolas Jover likes to block the players to block the opposition 'keeper on set pieces and teams now.
They have to work in alternative ways than other than the contributions of Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Martinelli, they struggle in open play. Eventually Arsenal's creative side abandoned them and did not do enough.
It will be very difficult in Paris, but they are not going outside. I have been in situations in the semi -final of the European Cup when the first leg did not go to your advantage.
Liverpool lost to Borussia Monchengladbach in 1978 and went home 0-0 at Bayern Munich in 1981, but we managed to turn both. PSG can be applied.
Why I swam the channel (twice!) This week
I swam the English channel this week and I am so happy that it is over. The only time I want to see that piece of water again flies over it on a plane.
As part of Team Debra we swam the 59 miles from Dover to France and back, non-stop in 22 hours. The cause is of course never earned again: raising money for those who suffer from epidermolysis bullosa. You can donate here.
I was so sure that I was going to swim, but I had an attack by sea tickness and it was a struggle for me. I only got into the water three times when I intended to do four, but when I was marking, I had a beautiful hem call from my little friend Isla Grist.
This super -young lady, which never fails to lift me up. She never fails to impress everyone she meets, as many of you may have seen this week with Rob Rinder on Good Morning Great -Britain.
I can't start telling you how good the other boys are in the team. They are ex-soldier and they went as if they were on a mission. To complete the challenge in almost 22 hours of death, the type of focus and mental resilience that these guys possess shows.
I was like a 50-year-old Ford Fiesta with 200,000 miles on the clock and they looked like Ferraris who rolled off the garage forecast. I want to thank them again for showing absolute zero respect for the senior member of the team.
But I would also like to say how grateful I am for many of you for your generosity and support. I don't know how much we picked up, but please stay with us, we haven't defeated this yet. Each donated pound brings us one step closer to stopping the pain.