Nelson Semedo wary of Lamine Yamal’s quality ahead of Spain vs Portugal: ‘He’s a gem and could prove decisive’

Nelson Semedo wary of Lamine Yamal’s quality ahead of Spain vs Portugal: ‘He’s a gem and could prove decisive’

class="wp-block-paragraph">Portugal defender Nélson Semedo believes his side must be careful not to focus exclusively on Lamine Yamal when they face Spain in the World Cup Round of 16.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">The heavyweight encounter is set to take place on Monday, pitting two of the pre-tournament favourites and all eyes will be on Lamine after his brilliant performance against Austria in the Round of 32.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">Although the Barcelona winger has emerged as one of the tournament’s biggest stars, Semedo insists Spain’s strength lies in the quality of the entire team.

Semedo remembers Ansu Fati

class="wp-block-paragraph">Semedo left Barcelona in 2020 after spending three seasons at Camp Nou, meaning he never shared a dressing room with Lamine Yamal.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">Speaking ahead of Monday’s knockout clash, the Fenerbahce full-back admitted that the youngster was barely on anyone’s radar during his time at the club.

All eyes on Lamine. (Photo by Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">“The truth is, I hadn’t heard anything about him,” Semedo said, as quoted by SPORT.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">“He was too young, and we already had a young star who’d just joined the squad: Ansu Fati. Lamine was very young.”

Portugal must stop Spain, not just Lamine

class="wp-block-paragraph">While praising Lamine’s extraordinary ability, Semedo warned that concentrating solely on the Barcelona teenager would be a mistake.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">“We have to stop Spain as a team,” said the Portuguese defender.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">“Lamine is a gem and could prove decisive, but we’ve shown that we have the squad to compete against them.”

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">He added: “Lamine is a fantastic player and has enormous potential, but if we focus on Lamine we’ll run into a lot of problems. Spain have other players who can make the difference.”

The key for Spain. (Photo by Charlotte Wilson/Getty Images)

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">Semedo concluded by stressing that Portugal’s preparation is centred on the collective challenge rather than any individual opponent.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">“We’ll be keeping an eye on them all. We have to focus on ourselves and have a clear game plan,” he concluded.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">Portugal and Spain meet with a place in the World Cup quarter-finals at stake, in what promises to be one of the standout ties of the knockout stage.

>

class="wp-block-paragraph">Lamine will be up against a strong opponent in PSG left-back Nuno Mendes, who is also looking forward to the challenge of facing the Barcelona gem.