Lamine Yamal netted a sensational solo goal to drag Barcelona back into their Champions League semi-final clash on his 100th appearance for the club.
The teenager has been one of the attacking starts of Barca’s Treble-chasing season, forming a formidable front line with Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski – and recently Ferran Torres.
Hailed as one of the best young players in Europe, he has been an ever-present on the right side of the club’s attack as they hunt for success in the Champions League and LaLiga on the back of winning the Copa del Rey.
And he once again showed his class on Wednesday night, as he netted a fine solo goal to halve the deficit after his side had gone 2-0 down early on.
After strikes from Marcus Thuram and Denzel Dumfries, Barca were on the back foot, but their star man picked the ball up on the right and ran with it.
After dispossessing Thuram, he breezed past Henrikh Mkhitaryan and used Alessandro Bastoni almost as a reference point, curling the shot around the defender into the far corner.
He wheeled away in celebration but it was more muted than fans have become accustomed to, as he welcomed the high-fives from his team-mates and quickly ran back into position.
After Yamal hit the underside of the crossbar just minutes later, Inter’s advantage was gone, with Ferran Torres finishing off a fine team move that ended with Raphinha heading into his path.
Rio Ferdinand and Ally McCoist were both full of praise for Yamal on TNT Sports commentary for the game, with McCoist giving him potentially the highest praise possible.
‘Once he gets that half yard, that’s absolute genius, that’s what it is,’ McCoist said. ‘Genius. What a treat this is.’
Ferdinand added: ‘This kid the taking the mick. He is taking liberties on the biggest stage. Every time Barcelona get the chance to open them up, they look to the youngest player in their team.
‘This is why we are here. You want to see brilliance, mesmeric performances and moments. The youngest man on the pitch has produced it.’
Before the game, Yamal appeared to suffer a groin issue during the warm-up, and he headed town the tunnel early without his team-mates.
Yamal was seen speaking to a coach and holding his groin, before stretching out in a bid to solve the issue. It appeared to happen when he slipped while he was taking a shot in the warm-ups.
He removed his shirt and headed down the tunnel, but UEFA confirmed there were no changes to the line-up and Yamal walked out with his team as expected.
His 100th appearance was confirmed as the first whistle was blown, and the teenager was running early on without any signs of real issue.
Ferdinand also heaped praise on him before the game, saying: ‘We had a walk down to the city centre but you can tell there is a superstar in this town.
‘A void was left when Lionel Messi left. I’m not saying he is a ready-made replacement, but he is doing things at 17 we have never ever seen before.’
