Barcelona star Lamine Yamal has been crowned the breakthrough athlete of the year by Laureus, during a Blitse Sports Awards evening in Madrid. The 17-year-old was one of a number of headline names that were honored at the prizes, including Novak Djokovic, Simone Biles and Mondo Duplantis, among others.
Lamine Yamal did not attend the Awards event in Madrid, less than 24 hours before Barcelona takes on RCD Mallorca in Montjuic in La Liga. However, he did send a video message as his acceptance speech, and pointed out that he hoped that the team awards had to follow the individual.
“Good evening, everyone. I would like to be there with you, but it was not possible. First of all I wanted to thank the Laoreus Academy for the prize. It is an honor for me and my family to receive this kind of prize,” he said Sport.
“I don't want to forget the staff of the National Team and Barca, and clearly my teammates, without whom I would not have had here. I hope that the team titles will come, because in the end we all want that. I am very happy to receive the prize. I will continue to work on these things, and I hope the season will go well.”
In the meantime, Real Madrid got the team of the year through Laureus, after he had protected the Champions League and La Liga titles in 2024. Captains Luka Modric and Dani Carvajal were present to collect the prize.
“I wanted to thank Laureus on behalf of Real Madrid. Our club is proud to receive such a prestigious prize. I think we had a great season, winning many trophies and showing excellence on the field. We reached the highest level last season,” Modric explained, as passed on Marca.
In the meantime, Carvajal sent this Saturday evening in Sevilla for the Copa del Rey final to Real Madrid for the Copa del Rey final.
“You have to get back on track when a heavy blow like the Champions League comes your way. We have a big challenge on Saturday with another final and La Liga at stake. We have to take a step forward and show the crest we wear on our chest. There is no better time to come back.”
Barcelona goes into the match as hot favorites against Los Blancos, where much of the conversation is about the future of the management position instead of the Copa final in the last few days, despite the fact that Real Madrid is still hunting for La Liga and the Copa. The Blaugrana, however, have shown signs of vulnerability in recent competitions, which admit three times against Borussia Dortmund and Celta Vigo in successive matches.