Yamal to be fit for World Cup, but injury ends his Barcelona La Liga race | Football News

Lamine Yamal’s World Cup participation with Spain was thrown into doubt by the hamstring injury he suffered while scoring a game-winning penalty.

Spanish international Lamine Yamal is expected to be fit for this summer’s World Cup, but his domestic season is over due to injury, his club Barcelona confirm.

The 18-year-old left the field injured on Wednesday after scoring the only goal of the game from the penalty spot against Celta Vigo in La Liga, raising concerns about his availability for the World Cup 2026.

Barcelona’s medical team diagnosed a hamstring injury, which they revealed on Thursday.

“The tests carried out have confirmed that first-team player ⁠Lamine Yamal has a ⁠hamstring injury in his left leg (biceps femoris muscle),” Barcelona posted in a statement on X.

“The player will follow ⁠a conservative treatment plan. Lamine Yamal will ⁠miss the remainder of ⁠the season, and he is expected to be available for the World Cup.”

Spain will kick ‌off their World Cup campaign, which is set to be Yamal’s debut at the tournament, with a Group H game against ‌Cape ‌Verde on June 15 in Atlanta, Georgia.

Barcelona lead Real Madrid by nine points in the Spanish top flight, but the pair face each other in a Clasico after two more rounds at Camp Nou on May 10.

There are a total of six games remaining to be played in the La Liga season with Real Madrid travelling to Real Betis on Friday and Barcelona playing at Getafe on Saturday.