How Lamine Yamal Trains to Become the Best Player in the World

Imagine being 17 and already a Spanish La Liga Champion twice, European Champion, Spanish Super Cup Winner, and Spanish Cup Winner. How hard Lamine Yamal trains to become this good, or is it just talent?

Too Young for Elite-Level Training Schedule

Yes, school matters, but when you are this good, no one will judge you. Getting the opportunity to play for Barcelona on the highest level is the deal you have to take.

You can divide his day into 3 segments:

• Two training sessions per day - Technical work in the morning, tactical or team work later in the day.
• Recovery - Hydrotherapy, mobility drills, and nutrition between and after training.
• Sleep - It may sound like a normal thing everyone does, but Yamal reportedly sleeps 9 hours on average. That’s more than some of the senior athletes.

His at the point where the rest of the Barca staff has to treat him as a senior squad member even if he just finished playing for the U17 team.

No Bulk Only Sharp Movements

When you look at his physical state, you will notice that he’s focused on sharp cuts and speed instead of strength. This includes a lot of bodyweight training or small weights that won’t put too much muscle mass.

The focus is on knee, hip, and ankle stability to prevent injury. This type of exercise is very important for a centre-forward, an attacking midfielder, or a winger, as Yamal covers all.

Emphasis is also on the direction change control. This is done through resisted sprints, deceleration work, and drills with a mini-band.

Soccer IQ and Mental Training

Fast decision-making ability for a midfielder is key to success. Yamal does this in a brilliant way, and that’s for a reason.

• Video Analysis sessions 3 to 4 times a week - enemy analysis and personal clips.
• Big teams like Barcelona have cognitive coaches that can help you improve processing speed and decision-making.
• Visual scanning - head movement during the game and where to look for opportunities is a combination of physical and mental capabilities.

Recovery and Training Have the Same Value

Dembele is not among the youngsters anymore. He had talent like Yamal, but he focused on playing games on his PlayStation instead of training and recovery. That’s also one of the reasons Lamine is going for that “best soccer player in the world” title, no distractions.

As we mentioned, the biggest help in Lamine Yamal's recovery is sleep. Other methods soccer players use to recover after training include contrast baths, ice baths, and cold water immersions.