Latest news with #Barcelona-born
Daily Mirror
4 days ago
- Sport
- Daily Mirror
Lamine Yamal's true feelings on Cristiano Ronaldo as he shows where heart lies
Lamine Yamal's Spain will go head-to-head with Cristiano Ronaldo and Portugal in the UEFA Nations League final, and the 17-year-old has made his true feelings about the icon clear Lamine Yamal has labelled Cristiano Ronaldo a 'legend,' but he will ignore niceties and focus on victory when his Spain meets Portugal in the UEFA Nations League final. The 17-year-old phenom inspired his national side to an enthralling 5-4 semi-final victory over France on Thursday, scoring a second-half brace and sealing a spot in Sunday's final. Joining them in the Munich showpiece will be Portugal, who bested Germany 2-1 in their semi-final matchup on Wednesday. The ever-talismanic Ronaldo scored his 137th international goal in the match, tapping home the winner in the 68th minute. The final will mark the first occasion that the iconic Ronaldo and prodigious Yamal have faced one another. The 40-year-old is still plying his trade with Al Nassr in the Saudi Pro League, while his upcoming adversary is starring for Barcelona. When the teenager was posed a question about his fabled opponent, Yamal showed Ronaldo respect, but indicated that his eyes will firmly be on a Spanish triumph and not elsewhere. "Cristiano is a legend and we all have a lot of respect for him, but I will do my job, which is to win the match," Yamal told reporters after Spain's victory against France. "We know what people expect from us. We have to keep winning. The hardest thing in football is to win and win, always win. And that is what we are going to try." The youngster showed off his impeccable attitude further when he opened up about the mindset he heads into big matchups with, admitting he likes to do his talking on the field. "I always tell my mum that when there are big games, I'm going to give my all, that's what motivates me and what I play football for, what I get up in the morning for," he added. "The important thing is to talk on the pitch." Yamal's opponent, Ronaldo, has mirrored the teenager's praise and admitted eight months ago that the Barcelona-born forward would lead a new generation of superstars. "He's got a huge potential," Ronaldo stated on his UR YouTube channel, speaking about Yamal in 2024. "I see a lot of talent. But let's see during his journey what's going to happen. "I think he'll make it. He will be the best player of this new generation. He needs luck because he is very young. I hope he doesn't have any problems. He is in a context that helps him a lot. Spain's national team is really good." Much like Yamal, however, any compliments will go out the window when Ronaldo's Portugal line up on Sunday, and the icon's coach, Roberto Martinez, has urged his players to emulate the personality of their Germany win in the final. "We need to enjoy the victory – we won for the first time in a while against Germany. Tactically we were exceptional and our commitment helped... it was a team victory," manager Martinez stated. "Now we can recover and evaluate. We want another performance with personality in this shirt." Join our new WhatsApp community and receive your daily dose of Mirror Football content. We also treat our community members to special offers, promotions, and adverts from us and our partners. If you don't like our community, you can check out any time you like. If you're curious, you can read our Privacy Notice.
The Independent
30-03-2025
- Sport
- The Independent
Primoz Roglic underlines Giro d'Italia credentials with emphatic Volta a Catalunya victory
Primoz Roglic produced a stunning solo attack to win the final stage of a closely-contested Volta Ciclista a Catalunya and with it, the overall title. The Slovenian, who won the Spanish stage race in 2023, rode clear of rivals including home favourite Juan Ayuso of UAE Team Emirates with 20km to go and stayed clear of the chasing bunch to arrive alone at the finish line in Barcelona. The stage was set for a thrilling battle between Roglic - who rides for Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe - and Barcelona-born Ayuso ahead of the seventh and final stage of the race, with the Slovenian just one second behind the 22-year-old after stage six. 'Beautiful, I had great fun here,' a cheerful Roglic said afterwards. 'I'm ready, the legs are ready so I was pretty much enjoying this week.' The pair traded the leader's jersey twice again at the intermediate sprints on stage seven, with Ayuso storming ahead in search of crucial bonus seconds at the second sprint marker. But it was Roglic who emerged clearly the stronger as he attacked on the Montjuic climb 20km from the finish line, dropping the Spaniard on the steep gradients and establishing a gap that would never be bridged. The 35-year-old, a four-time Vuelta a Espana winner, appears to be finding his peak form at the perfect time as he builds towards a second tilt at the Giro d'Italia. He won the corsa rosa in 2023 and appears to have a slim advantage over Ayuso heading into the year's first Grand Tour, where the pair are expected to be the two main contenders. 'I really don't want to do these things [sprints],' Roglic added afterwards. 'I want to decide it on the mountains or on the climbs. But at the end, [it] came down to bonus seconds and fighting till the last stage. At the end I had the legs. Also, after the second bonus sprint, I had no choice - if I wanted to win, I had to do something.' Ayuso ultimately finished 28 seconds down overall, with his compatriot Enric Mas of Movistar rounding off the podium 53 seconds behind Roglic. There were three Spaniards in the top four as Soudal Quick-Step's Mikel Landa ended the week one second behind Mas. Ineos Grenadiers ' Laurens de Plus was second over the line in Barcelona, 14 seconds behind Roglic, and sixth overall, with Lennert van Eetvelt of Lotto third on the same time. Ayuso finished 34th, 19 seconds behind the overall winner, as he struggled on the later climbs of the 88km stage. The race was also a coming-of-age for 19-year-old British talent Matthew Brennan, who won the opening stage, a punchy run into Sant Feliu de Guixols, for his first victory at WorldTour level. The Visma-Lease a Bike rider wore the leader's jersey for the first two days and narrowly missed out on victory in stage two's sprint, finishing second behind compatriot Ethan Vernon, before adding another win on stage five into Amposta.
