'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
At the age of 16, Lamine Yamal is already drawing comparisons to juggernauts like Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney. He is close to beating them in terms of pure numbers, although the three legends surpass him in a couple of categories for now.
GiveMeSport has drawn an interesting comparison of Tamal's first two seasons with that of the first two seasons of Messi, Ronaldo, and Rooney at the club level. The pure numerical comparison brings about a major revelation: Lamine Yamal has scored more goals in his first two seasons than Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, or Wayne Rooney (despite having fewer appearances than Ronaldo and Rooney).
Yamal made his debut for Barcelona on April 29, 2023, at the age of just 15 years. In comparison, both Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo were 17 years old at the time of their first team debuts in Barcelona and Sporting Lisbon respectively. Rooney made his first-team debut at Everton at the age of 16.
Trending
Here's a look at Ronaldo, Messi and Rooney's numbers at their respective clubs when they were of the same age as Lamine Yamal:
Lamine Yamal's statistics compared to Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and Wayne Rooney
Here's a complete breakdown of Lamine Yamal's statistics until in comparison with Messi, Ronaldo and Rooney at his age:
Appearances
In terms of appearances made in their first two seasons at the club level, Wayne Rooney (77) is leading among the three, followed by Cristiano Ronaldo (71), Lamine Yamal (64) and Lionel Messi (34).
Yamal made his first team debut for Barcelona at the age of 15 years, 9 months, and 16 days under the guidance of Xavi Hernandez in a La Liga fixture against Real Betis.
He broke multiple records in terms of appearances for the 2023-24 season including the youngest player for Barcelona, the youngest goalscorer for Barca and La Liga, the youngest Champions League starter, and the youngest Barca player to feature in an El Clasico.
In comparison, both Messi and Ronaldo were not fielded for their first teams before turning 17. In his full-fledged debut season, Ronaldo had 31 appearances, while Messi had nine. Rooney is the only player in this list to have made his debut before turning 17. He made 37 appearances for Everton in his debut season, compared to Yamal's 50 for Barcelona (2023-24 season).
Goals scored
Surprisingly, Lamine Yamal beats all three of Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, and Wayne Rooney in terms of goal contributions (G/A), with a total of 26 G/A in 64 appearances across club and country.
In the second place, it is Cristiano Ronaldo with 11 goal contributions for Sporting Lisbon in his first season and 14 goal contributions for Manchester United in his second full-fledged season, making it 25 G/A in his first two seasons, one less than Yamal.
Ronaldo is followed by Wayne Rooney with 9 goal contributions in his first season and 13 in his second season, making it a total of 22 G/A in his first two seasons.
Finally, Lionel Messi had only a goal contribution in his debut year when he was used sparingly as a substitute. However, La Pulga recorded 13 G/A in his full-on breakthrough year.
Titles Won
In terms of collective trophies, Lionel Messi leads the pack with three to his name. Barcelona won La Liga in his debut season (2004-05) and in the consecutive season (2005-06) when he featured as a full-fledged first-team player. The Blaugrana also won the Champions League in the latter season, although Leo was suspended for the final.
Cristiano Ronaldo is second on the list, with two trophies won in his first two seasons. In his debut season, he picked up the 2002 Portuguese Super Cup, while in the second season, he won the FA Cup with Manchester United.
Lamine Yamal is third on the list compared to Ronaldo and Messi, as he only won the 2022-23 La Liga with Barcelona. Wayne Rooney did not win any trophies in his first two seasons.
