Netherlands coach Ronald Koeman was full of praise for Lamine Yamal, his next opponent with Spain, and said he wants to see him as the new Messi at Barcelona.
The Netherlands hosts Spain on Thursday in the first leg of the quarterfinals of the Nations League. The team coached by Ronald Koeman seeks the ‘Final Four’ by eliminating the reigning champion of the competition and of the European Championship.
The coach knows where the danger lies and did not hesitate to praise Lamine Yamal: “He is a special player. It’s important for a coach to have this type of player who decides games. Like Messi used to do. I had him and he is impressive. I hope that one day Lamine Yamal can achieve what Messi has achieved with Barca. I hope that the young players will give Barca many titles.
“I am very happy to have made Pedri, Gavi or Balde debut, but the merit is theirs, they have proven to be great footballers. It’s nice to see them because I’m very fond of them. That’s why the match is special for me,” he confessed.
Ronald Koeman also explained the presence of Memphis Depay, Corinthians striker and first player from a Latin American league to be called up by the ‘Oranje’, with a good chance of being part of the starting eleven according to reports from the Netherlands.
“The way I’ve seen Memphis in Brazil and what I’ve seen here, how fresh and fit he is, gives me confidence,” Koeman added.