Lionel Messi, Lamine Yamal go full circle after viral baby photo
· Yahoo Sports
Argentina have booked their place in the World Cup final against Spain with their 2-1 win against England, setting up a clash between Lionel Messi and Lamine Yamal.
Messi and Yamal will square off on the pitch for the first time at MetLife Stadium on Sunday. However, it’s not the first time they have met, as these two football stars had a wholesome encounter during a charity photoshoot 19 years ago, when Messi was a young rising star, and Yamal was still a baby.
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In the calendar photoshoot organized by the Catalan newspaper Diario Sport in conjunction with UNICEF, various Barcelona players posed with children and their families. Little did anybody involved realize that there might have been a proverbial passing of the torch happening at the same time.
Since then, Yamal has won three La Liga titles and a European championship with Spain, while Messi went on to become the GOAT. Yamal still has a long way to go to match Messi’s achievements, but beating him in the World Cup final would be a good place to start.
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June 26, 2026; Guadalajara, Mexico; Spain’s Lamine Yamal in action with Uruguay’s Juan Manuel Sanabria. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Becerril-Reuters via Imagn ImagesArgentina and Spain’s journey to the World Cup final
Argentina and Spain topped their respective groups to qualify for the knockouts of this year’s World Cup. However, their paths couldn’t have turned out any different.
Argentina were pushed to the limit by Cape Verde (3-2) and Egypt (3-2) in the Rounds of 32 and 16, before securing a relatively easy win against Switzerland (3-1), though they also needed extra time to finish them off. La Albiceleste also had to dig deep to rally from a one-goal deficit to eliminate England last night.
After their shocking goalless draw against Cape Verde in their opening match, Spain has cruised past their opponents. During the knockouts, they dispatched Austria (3-0) and Portugal (1-0) in the Rounds of 32 and 16 without conceding before eliminating Belgium (2-1) and France (2-0) in the quarterfinals and semifinals.
Argentina aim to become the first country since Brazil in 1962 to successfully defend the World Cup, while Spain are gunning for their first since 2010.