When a man engages in sexual intercourse with a woman, one of two things can happen: She can become pregnant, or she might not. If a pregnancy occurs and a child is born, they both become responsible for the spiritual, mental, and physical development of a new human being for at least 18 years.

In September 2006, a Muslim man from Morocco named Mounair and a Christian woman from Equatorial Guinea named Sheila came together in Spain and consummated their relationship. This consummation resulted in a male child named Lamine Yamal entering planet Earth nine months later on July 13, 2007.

The relationship eventually ended in 2010, with Mounair and Sheila deciding to co-parent the toddler, who at the tender age of four years had started participating in organised football at CF La Torreta.

Two years later, the FC Barcelona scouts came calling when they realised that the young boy was not a normal six-year-old but was a generational talent who played with and against youngsters several years his senior. He dominated teammates and opponents alike, as it became visibly apparent that the youngster possessed the potential of becoming the face of both club and national football.

In the year 2013, the six-year-old’s parents enrolled him in the multifaceted world-renowned Barcelona football academy La Masia, the producer of Barcelona superstars. Football theory and practice during the day, academic tutoring when the sun went down. Such was the itinerary of the new prodigy.

At age seven, in the year 2014, he became a member of Barcelona’s youth contingent, as he dominated players much older than he was.

When most 16-year-old footballers are competing for a place on a youth squad or playing video games, the youthful Lamine, now a starter on the ‘A’ squad, gleefully humiliated and dismantled all types of defensive stalwarts while simultaneously frustrating experienced veteran goalkeepers.

Many Barca veterans expressed significant dismay as they endeavoured to compare and rate him with recent Barcelona phenoms, namely Lionel Messi, a 17-year veteran, and Neymar da Silva Santos, another megastar, who donned the blue and garnet for four seasons.

The task of comparing and rating the new prodigy has proven to be futile at least, and a compromise at best. The old-timers concluded that Lamine was an amalgamation of the two superstars. He exemplified the ferocity, boldness, and tenacity of Neymar while, at the same time, exhibiting the unbridled creativity and dexterity of Messi, an anomaly if there ever was one — an appreciated and extremely welcome anomaly.

So the bilingual (Arabic and Spanish) 17-year-old already has two La Liga trophies for his club, FC Barcelona, and a Euro championship for his country, Spain. A phenomenal achievement for a lad who cannot legally get behind the steering wheel of an automobile.

In addition to those sterling accomplishments, he was also the recipient of the Kopa trophy (2024), awarded for the most outstanding U-21 player globally, along with the Golden Boy award for the best U-21 footballer on the continent of Europe (2024).

He was also ranked eighth in nominations for the ultra-prestigious Ballon d’Or trophy (2024), the most sought-after international individual award among the crème de la crème of world footballers.

Ever since the expected demise of Edson Arantes do Nascimento (Pele), the pundits of the beautiful game have been preoccupied with an unbelievable host of heir apparents who have all been, at one time or another, compared to Pele, the indisputable ‘King’.

The heir apparent has been many and diverse. Johan Cruyff, Diego Maradona, Ronaldinho Gaúcho, Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Neymar Junior, Kylian Mbappe, and now the wonderkid that has the entire planet asking: Will this new prince be the one who will finally wear the crown? I guess only time will tell, but his trajectory is moving in an upward direction, much faster than all the above-mentioned when they were his age.

Next year, 2026, will be pivotal for Yamal. This will be the year when he will encounter all the current greats — his age and older — who will gather for several weeks between June 11 and July 19 in the Americas.

On Sunday, July 19, it will be decided which country rules the football roost. Will Spain and Yamal, who at that time will be 19 years old, still be standing when the final whistle is blown? I strongly believe that they will be. Club football is the yardstick that evaluates a footballer’s potential, while World Cup football is a whole different ball game, it can cement one’s legacy.

Prior to 1958, Brazil had discovered, nurtured, and developed a secret weapon that only Brazilians were aware of, with the world becoming privy during the tournament when it was unleashed in the summer of 1958 in Sweden.

It has become apparent to football aficionados that another weapon is about to be unleashed on the world. Only this time, the secret is not much of a secret. There is a humongous difference between information technology in 1958 and 2026.