Saka hails Barca star Lamine Yamal

Arsenal Star Bukayo Saka, praised Barca’s Lamine Yamal, but insisted that he does not compare himself to him or other wingers.

He touched upon the Ballon d’Or, reassuring that while it remains a dream, his focus is fully on being successful with Arsenal.

Bukayo Saka has praised Lamine Yamal for his ‘unreal’ performances with Barcelona this season.

The 17-year-old has continued to steal the headlines this term thanks to his impressive displays, especially on the big stage.

Yamal’s brilliance helped Barca come from behind to secure a 3-3 draw against Inter Milan in the first leg of the Champions League semi-final tie midweek, leaving the tie in equilibrium ahead of the return in Milan next Tuesday.

“He’s top. Doing what he’s doing at his age, what can you say, it’s unreal,” Saka told ‘Sky Sports Premier League’ about the Spaniard. “It’s not normal. No one does it. I don’t think I’ve seen that level of 17-year-olds. Credit to him.”

Yamal’s 24th-minute striker at the Montjuic was reminiscent of his Euro 2024 semi-final goal against France, pulling his Spain level after Les Bleus had opened the scoring, on the way to winning the trophy against Saka’s England.

And the two could meet in a final again on May 31 at the Allianz Arena should their respective sides win their semi-final ties. Arsenal trail 1-0 against Paris Saint-Germain ahead of Tuesday’s second leg at the Parc des Princes.

Asked if he compared himself to Yamal or other wingers like Salah or Dembele, Saka said: “I don’t like to put myself in these types of conversations. I just play my own games and leave it to people to have their own opinions.”

The Englishman concluded by briefly talking about his Ballon d’Or ambitions, reassuring that while it remains a dream, his focus was fully on reaching successes with Arsenal.

“Of course, it’s a dream. I think it’s a lot of players’ dreams. But like I said, the only thing you can focus on right now is winning here (at Arsenal). Everything else will come after,” he said.