Yamal reveals World Cup injury fear after hamstring scare against Espanyol

Lamine Yamal has admitted he feared his World Cup was over the moment he pulled up with a hamstring injury against Espanyol in April, telling Marca he was “praying internally” the problem was not serious enough to rule him out of the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico.

The 18-year-old Barcelona winger is expected to miss Spain’s opening group-stage fixture against Cape Verde as he continues his recovery. Head coach Luis de la Fuente, when naming his squad, indicated that players unavailable for the first game would be fit for the second against Saudi Arabia — though there has been some suggestion Yamal could miss that match too.

“I remember the sequence in which I got injured,” Yamal said. “I was praying internally that it was nothing serious, just a cramp or something, because I was so close to the World Cup and I knew it was a hamstring injury, something I’d never had before, but it wasn’t a small thing. So I was afraid it was serious, and especially afraid that it wasn’t serious but that I could relapse and miss the World Cup.”

Yamal acknowledged that the enforced rest may carry an unexpected benefit heading into a gruelling tournament. “It’s also true that it helps to be playing in a World Cup, so your mind is as if you haven’t played a single game all season and I’m really looking forward to making my debut,” he said.

The teenager, widely expected to be the central figure in Spain’s bid for the title, showed little sign of being weighed down by that expectation. “The pressure suits me better,” he said. “In the end, when your standards are higher, you raise your level. I see it as a challenge and I really enjoy it.”

Reflecting on the speed of his rise, Yamal added: “In my mind it’s like I’ve been playing football for 10 years, but in reality it’s only been three, and four years ago I was playing with them at the sports centre. So a kid who was playing with you three years ago is now going to play in a World Cup. It has to be crazy, really crazy.”

Yamal is not Spain’s only fitness concern. Nico Williams is also recovering from injury after a season disrupted by fitness issues, while Mikel Merino is returning from a lengthy absence, though he has been cleared to train with the squad.