Lamine Yamal’s dribbling numbers are becoming absurd, even by his own standards. FC Barcelona fans already knew they were watching one of the most dangerous one-on-one players in the game, but this season the teenager is not just maintaining that level, he is improving it.
According to Marca, Lamine led La Liga in dribbles last season and is doing so again now, only with even better efficiency. That alone says plenty, because it is much harder to improve when opponents already design their defensive plans around stopping you.
The numbers are striking. Last season he finished with 161 dribbles in 35 league matches, an average of 4.60 per game. This season that figure has risen to 4.72, with 118 dribbles in 25 La Liga appearances so far.
Lamine missed five matches between September and October because of pubalgia, yet he is still producing at a rate that could put him right back at the top of the chart by season’s end. He is getting even better as the season goes on.
Just as important is the timing of his rise. He had 69 dribbles by the December break, then added another 49 in only three months, which suggests his attacking influence has become even stronger in the decisive phase of the campaign.
Lamine is not a specialist who only beats players for highlights. His dribbling is now feeding the entire attack, opening games up, creating chances and making everything around him more dangerous. In fact, limiting his game to being an incredible dribbler would be doing a disservice to him.
And that is why he feels unstoppable right now. The one-on-one brilliance is still his trademark, but it is no longer the whole story. He is dribbling like a street footballer and growing like a complete elite attacker, which is a frightening combination for the rest of the league.
