Yamal scored the first goal for Barca in the Champions League semi-final first leg against Inter Milan, becoming the youngest player to score in a Champions League semi-final. Earlier this season, the Spanish international also set a record as the youngest player to score in both the round of 16 and quarter-finals of Europe’s most prestigious tournament.

At 17 years and 292 days, Yamal is also the second youngest player to start a Champions League semi-final, behind only Julian Draxler – who was 65 days younger when he started for Schalke against Man United in May 2011.

With a streak of three consecutive “scoring” matches in the Champions League, Yamal has become the player who has scored the most goals in this tournament before his 18th birthday, with a total of 5 goals. The next ones are Ansu Fati (Barca) and Ethan Nwaneri (Arsenal) with 2 goals each.

Of course, with his record-breaking haul of titles, trophies and goals, everyone knows that Yamal is a special talent. And as the 17-year-old prodigy has reached 100 professional appearances, it’s a good time to compare his progress to that of former teenage sensations Messi, Ronaldo and Mbappe at the same career milestone.

Lamine Yamal

• Age at 100th match: 17 years 292 days (April 30, 2025)
• Minutes played: 6,859
• Goals: 22
• Build: 27
• Club Titles: 3

Having only played professionally for two seasons, Yamal has already won La Liga, the Copa del Rey with Barca and the EURO with Spain. Since making his first-team debut in 2023 at the age of 15, the winger has quickly become a mainstay in the Blaugrana attack. This season, Yamal is having the most explosive season of his career with 15 goals and 20 assists in 49 games, contributing greatly to the team’s “historic treble”. If I had to choose a phrase, it would definitely be: “A dream start”.

Lionel Messi

• Age when playing 100th match: 20 years 248 days (February 27, 2008)
• Minutes played: 6,747
• Goals: 41
• Build: 14
• Club Titles: 5

With Yamal’s meteoric rise, it is impossible not to compare him to Messi – the greatest goalscorer in Barca’s history. However, it took Messi longer to reach the 100-game mark because his coach gradually brought him up to the first team. Interestingly, a few months before reaching 100 games, Messi was photographed holding baby Yamal during a charity photoshoot – a magical moment that few expected would become iconic.

Cristiano Ronaldo

• Age when playing 100th match: 19 years 348 days (January 19, 2005)
• Minutes played: 5,785
• Goals: 13
• Build: 13
• Club Titles: 2

Ronaldo was only promoted to Sporting Lisbon’s first team at the age of 17, and had only managed to score five goals before his 18th birthday – a modest number compared to Yamal. However, CR7’s turning point came when he joined Manchester United, where he won the FA Cup in his first season and made his 100th career appearance in that competition – scoring his 20th career goal against Exeter City. Before that, Ronaldo also won the Portuguese Super Cup with Sporting. Of course, the rest of the story is known to everyone: the titles, records and goals just kept pouring in like a flood.

Kylian Mbappe

• Age when playing 100th match: 19 years 119 days (April 18, 2018)
• Minutes played: 6,410
• Goals: 48
• Build: 29
• Club Titles: 3

After emerging as a phenomenon in Monaco’s 2016/17 season with the Ligue 1 championship, Mbappe quickly moved to PSG for a record fee at the age of 18. By the time he played his 100th match of his career (against Bordeaux in Ligue 1 in the 2017/18 season), he was already a true superstar, scoring nearly 50 goals, assisting nearly 30 times and helping the team win all 4 domestic titles in the same season.

Erling Haaland

• Age when playing 100th match: 19 years 212 days (February 18, 2020)
• Minutes played: 5,948
• Goals: 60
• Build: 15
• Club Titles: 2

Haaland – the most feared “goal machine” of this generation – did not disappoint fans in his 100th career match. He scored twice to help Dortmund defeat PSG 2-1 in the Champions League round of 16, then sat down to celebrate in his famous “meditation” style. That season, Haaland scored 39 goals in 29 matches for RB Salzburg and Dortmund, including 11 goals in just 7 matches for the German team. He later went on to break a series of Champions League records and win the “treble” with Man City, along with countless individual titles.

Neymar

• Age when playing 100th match: 18 years 251 days (October 17, 2010)
• Minutes played: 6,944
• Goals: 48
• Build: 27
• Club Titles: 2

Neymar was close to reaching 50 goals when he made his 100th appearance for Santos. The talented player broke into the first team at the age of 16 and quickly lit up the Brazilian football pitch with his skill, cunning and boundless creativity. After finishing second in his first season with Santos, Neymar helped his hometown club win three consecutive Paulista state championships before being signed by Barca in the summer of 2013.

Summary

• Yamal has the highest number of minutes played in the group before the age of 18, which shows absolute trust from Barca.
• Although he has not achieved the same scoring efficiency as Messi, Mbappe or Haaland, Yamal stands out thanks to his comprehensiveness (nearly 50 goal contributions), and has scored in important knockout rounds of the Champions League.
• In terms of titles, Yamal has also equaled or surpassed many people, owning 3 trophies despite being only 17 years old.