Lamine Yamal Signs First Professional Contract with Barcelona

Lamine Yamal has signed his first professional contract with Barcelona.

With the new deal, the 16-year-old Spanish soccer player has extended his stay at the Catalan club until at least 2026.

Lamine Yamal Yamal, a winger, put pen to paper on the deal — which includes a €1 billion ($1.05bn) release clause — at Barça‘s training ground on Monday at an event also attended by president Joan Laporta and sporting director Deco.

Until he turns 18, Yamal cannot sign a contract for longer than three years, which is the reason he has not signed longer terms.

It has been a record-breaking year for the forward, who made his first team debut in April while he was still 15, becoming the youngest player to represent Barça in LaLiga. He has since gone on to become the youngest player to ever play and score for Spain, netting on his debut against Georgia earlier this month.

Meanwhile, at club level, he has established himself in Xavi Hernandez‘s squad, making nine appearances in all competitions so far this season, including four starts. He set up the winner, an own goal by Sergio Ramos, in Friday’s 1-0 victory over Sevilla in LaLiga as Barça maintained their unbeaten start to the campaign.

Further records could fall in the coming weeks, with Yamal still able to become the youngest-ever goal scorer in LaLiga and the Champions League. That record is held by Ansu Fati in the Champions League, whose goal against Inter Milan for Barça in 2019 came when he was 17 years and 40 days old.

In LaLiga, though, he is running out of time. He has just one game left — away at Granada on Sunday — to beat the mark set by Fabrice Olinga, who was 16 years and 98 days old when he scored for Malaga a decade ago.

Yamal first joined Barça in 2013 from local Catalan club CF Torreta and has since progressed through the academy, racing through the age groups until reaching the first team this year.

Pereira to Spend Next Season with La Liga’s Granada

Andreas Pereira is heading to España…

The 20-year-old Brazilian footballer and Manchester United midfield prospect is set for a loan switch to Granada Club de Fútbol in La Liga after the two clubs agreed on a season-long transfer.

Andreas Pereira

Pereira, a Brazil Under-23 international, will spend the campaign in Spain with Paco Jemez‘s side and should gain the first-team experience required in one of Europe’s top divisions.

After making 13 appearances during Louis van Gaal‘s time in charge, the Pereira scored in Jose Mourinho‘s opening pre-season friendly at Wigan Athletic with a superb drive.

“I love Andreas Pereira as a player and I would love to have him in my squad,” said Mourinho at Friday’s press conference. “But he will go to Granada.”

Granada already have a number of players currently on loan, including Jeremie Bogie and Victorien Angban from Chelsea and Arsenal‘s Jon Toral.

Real Madrid’s Navas Sets La Liga Clean Sheet Record

Keylor Navas is a perfect No. 10 in the La Liga record books…

The 28-year-old Costa Rican soccer player has broken a club record for clean sheets at the start of a season, after racking up a fourth consecutive clean sheet in La Liga and fifth in a row in all competitions with his clean sheet in Real Madrid’s 1-0 win over Granada on Saturday.

Keylor Navas

Navas is the tenth goalkeeper in La Liga’s 86-year history to record such a streak at the beginning of the campaign.

The fifth straight shutout since the start of 2015-16 betters former Real Madrid keeper Miguel Angel‘s sequence of four on the spin at the beginning of the 1975-76 campaign.

“It was a difficult night for me at the end of the transfer market but that is now in the past,” Navas told reporters.

“Now I am thinking of the present and the coach [Rafa Benitez] believes in me. I have had the chance to stay and I will give my best. I am very grateful to the Real fans for their support which is not easy to earn.”

Marca reports that Navas is now just 10 minutes away from bettering Iker Casillas‘ personal best without conceding a goal, after the Spaniard went 460 minutes without being beaten in 2008-09.

Before Navas, Claudio Bravo was the last man to join the exclusive club of keepers to have remained unbeaten four weeks into the La Liga season, with the Chilean settling quickly into life at Barça last term. Real Madrid’s only other member of this hall of fame is Miguel Ángel, who didn’t concede in any of his first four league appearances in 1975-76.

Navas’ streak has put him in the esteemed company of Barça legends Salvador Sadurní (1968-69), the first to achieve the feat, and Pello Artola (1977-78); Atlético Madrid great Abel Resino (1991-92); Deportivo‘s Paco Liaño (1993-94); Real Sociedad‘s José Ramón Esnaola (1970-71); Celta Vigo‘s Pablo Cavallero (2001-02), Zaragoza‘s Manolo Villanova (1972-73) and Compostela‘s Javier Falagán (1995-96).

Messi Reaches 400-Goal Milestone in Barcelona Win Against Granada

Lionel Messi has smashed another record…

The 27-year-old Argentine soccer star and first-ever four-time Ballon d’Or winner scored his 400th career goal on Saturday as FC Barcelona smashed six unanswered goals past Granada at the Nou Camp.

Lionel Messi

Messi’s landmark strike came in the 61st minute of the match — heading in Dani Alves‘ volleyed cross — to put Barca up 4-0 after a goal from Ivan Rakitic and two from Neymar had all but wrapped up three points before the break.

Neymar completed his hat-trick in the 66th minute before Messi tucked away his 401st career goal late on to complete the rout and seal Barca’s biggest win in La Liga this season.

Messi has now scored 359 goals in competitive matches for Barcelona and 42 for Argentina.

“I never imagined I could achieve anything like this in my career,” Messi said on his official Facebook page.

“Thanks for all the congratulations on scoring 400 goals with FC Barcelona and the Argentinian National Team. I’ll continue working hard to reach more targets,” he added.

The four-ton mark was passed by his La Liga rival Cristiano Ronaldo last January, but the Argentine has bragging rights after reaching the total in just 525 appearances compared to the Portuguese who took 653 games.