Lamine Yamal sealed Borussia Dortmund’s downfall with Barcelona’s fourth goal in the first leg of the Champions League quarterfinals, and shortly afterward, he turned to the bench and asked to be substituted. Many feared the young forward had suffered an injury, but Hansi Flick dispelled those concerns after the match.“Lamine is fine. He’s played a lot recently, so this was a good opportunity for Ansu to get a chance. It’s important for him to collect minutes. He’s been training well and deserved to play,” explained the Barcelona coach.Borussia lucky to concede only four goals, Barca on a rollSpanish media went a step further, claiming that Yamal intentionally requested the substitution to help out his teammate and good friend by giving him much-needed playing time. It wouldn’t be the first time this happened at Barcelona, as Flick had already mentioned that earlier this year, during the 7-1 demolition of Valencia, Gavi gave up his spot so Pablo Torre could come on.“What impressed me about Gavi was when I wanted to bring him on for the last 15 minutes of the match against Valencia, but he said it would be better if Pablo Torre went on instead of him. That’s a great gesture and shows how well-connected the guys in the team are,” Flick said at the time, though he also added he would’ve preferred that detail hadn’t become public.🚨🚨🌕| CONFIRMED: Lamine Yamal asked to be subbed off to help Ansu Fati, who he knows is having a hard time. Lamine also rejected taking his number 10 jersey last summer. [@tjuanmarti] 🔵🔴⭐️🤝 pic.twitter.com/jkht7p90d5— Managing Barça (@ManagingBarca) April 9, 2025 Clearly, the German coach doesn’t want the impression to form that he lacks authority over the players or that they decide among themselves who plays and when. Still, the Spanish press believes last night’s situation was similar to the one against Valencia.“We’ve known each other for years and we’re great friends, I don’t care what number I wear,” Yamal had previously said when the topic of Barcelona’s number 10 jersey came up—currently worn by Fati, while the brilliant young forward chose number 19. It was the 85th minute when Ansu Fati came on for Lamine Yamal. Before the end of the game, he had one potential chance but failed to control the ball properly. The 22-year-old forward is clearly lacking confidence, which isn’t surprising considering his limited playing time this season. He’s made just nine appearances, totaling 191 minutes, hence Yamal’s effort to “give him a push.”Strange case of Ansu Fati is getting weirder with every new dayThe young Spaniard has missed a good part of the season due to injuries—first a foot issue, then a muscle injury—though that doesn’t change the fact that Flick hasn’t shown the same level of trust in him as he has in some other (young) players. Still, despite receiving offers from Fenerbahce and Besiktas during the winter transfer window, Fati chose to stay at Barcelona and try to prove himself to the coach. His teammates are there to support him, but ultimately, it’s the German coach who will make the final call.##NAJAVA_MECA_8842546##
