Lamine Yamal’s World Cup injury scare: Has he been overused at Barcelona?

Lamine Yamal asked to be substituted after scoring a penalty in Barca's 1-0 win on Wednesday Alex Caparros/Getty Images Share articleLamine Yamal has been ruled out of what remains of Barcelona’s season after suffering a hamstring injury — and with the World Cup on the horizon, there were fears he could miss even more. The 18-year-old forward went down and had to be replaced after scoring a 40th-minute penalty in Wednesday’s 1-0 home win over Celta Vigo, a result that maintained Barca’s nine-point La Liga lead over Real Madrid with six matches to play. One of those remaining fixtures is the home Clasico against Madrid on May 10. Barca will have to complete their title defence without him after scans on Thursday showed the extent of his injury. Thankfully for Spain, he is expected to recover in six to seven weeks. They will hope he can return to his best before their Group H opener against Cape Verde on June 15. Yamal is already the most important player for his club and country. He has become a global icon in the almost three years since his Barca senior debut aged 15 on April 29, 2023. He has taken Lionel Messi’s No 10 shirt at the Camp Nou and is making it his own. He would have been a huge miss for this summer’s World Cup. “This injury has sidelined me just when I wanted to be there the most, and that hurts more than I can say,” Yamal posted on Instagram. “It hurts not fighting alongside my team-mates, not helping when the team needs me. But this isn’t the end, it’s just a pause. I’ll come back stronger, and next season will be even better.” Is there time for him to hit peak form once more? Was the injury down to him being overplayed? And why have Barcelona suffered so many hamstring problems? The article below contains information gathered from several sources who asked to speak anonymously as they did not have permission to comment. No Barcelona player has been on the pitch more than Yamal this season. He has clocked up 3,702 minutes across 45 matches, according to Transfermarkt. Goalkeeper Joan Garcia is the next highest, with 3,682 minutes and 41 games. In a way, it is normal for any team’s best player to be the one who features most often. Yamal has scored 24 goals and provided 18 assists this term — more than any team-mate on both metrics. He does not turn 19 until July but he is already the team’s biggest star. Every player also needs to be looked after, especially those who are younger and still developing. Yamal found himself at the centre of a debate on that subject seven months ago. Yamal has missed just five Barca games through injury over 2025-26. They all came between September and October, and were due to discomfort from a groin problem that had begun to present itself slightly earlier in the campaign. It led to a row between Barcelona and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), after Yamal took painkillers before playing in World Cup qualifying matches against Bulgaria and Turkey, which Spain won 3-0 and 6-0, appearing for 79 minutes in Sofia and 73 minutes in Konya. When he returned to Barca, he was left out for four consecutive matches as it became clear he was struggling with pubalgia — a groin problem that seems to particularly affect young footballers who often engage in short, sharp dribbles or bursts of acceleration. After returning for 32 minutes from the bench in the following game, he then had to sit out a fifth. Flick said he was “very sad” about Spain’s decision to field Yamal in those World Cup qualifiers, adding: “This is not taking care of players.” RFEF sources said at the time that Barcelona had not disclosed whether Yamal had any problems before he joined up, and that was why he was not discharged from international duty. Yamal missed the next two international breaks due to fitness problems, but last month he featured in friendlies against Serbia and Egypt. Flick has always insisted his players should be open and communicative about their physical condition, and Yamal has been no exception. There is a zero-risk policy when handling injury or discomfort. Yamal, like all players, wants to feature in every game. On multiple occasions this season, he has shown displeasure when Flick has subbed him off. The German head coach has often had to play down suggestions of tension over the issue. “When I played and the manager changed me, I was not satisfied either, it’s normal,” Flick said on February 22, when Yamal made his frustrations clear after being taken off in the 88th minute with Barca 3-0 up at home to Levante. Flick has rotated Yamal on limited occasions this season, but less frequently than other team-mates: 42 of his 45 appearances have come as a starter. This is surely a question Flick has thrown to his staff as well. The quickest reply from club sources refers to their hectic schedule and the diminishing rest players are afforded by the football calendar. But there has been a clear pattern of hamstring problems at Barca this season. Raphinha, Pedri, Frenkie de Jong, Alejandro Balde, Eric Garcia, Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres have all suffered hamstring injuries over 2025-26. In November, The Athletic reported on tensions around the topic in Barca’s medical and fitness departments. There were clashes and disagreements between players and staff over recovery processes, as well as complaints over gym work. Tensions peaked when, in the build-up to the first Clasico of the season on October 26, Raphinha had a setback in his hamstring injury. Flick stepped in, leading to some changes in responsibilities, but the team has suffered several more hamstring injuries since, including Raphinha’s third of this season. It is something Barca will have to address before their next pre-season, as the topic has raised concerns among the players and frustrated Flick. When asked at a press conference this week what the squad is lacking, following their defeat in the Champions League quarter-finals, Flick pointed to the key injuries Barca have suffered. However, elements of Flick’s style of play — especially the commitment to intense pressing and an aggressive offside trap that often forces players into sharp covering runs —  come with particular physical demands. On this point, sources on the coaching staff said earlier this season that they have been frustrated by referees not blowing up to stop play when a clear offside should be called. They felt that carrying on until the attacking move has finished forces players into unnecessary high-intensity efforts that bring avoidable risks. Everyone associated with the national team can breathe a sigh of relief — Yamal will not miss the World Cup. But what kind of form will he arrive in? There is no reason Yamal would not be available, given the expected timeframe of his absence of six to seven weeks. The coaching staff will need to assess his progress as soon as he joins the international camp. Spain are playing two friendlies before the start of the World Cup, the first one on June 4 in A Coruna, against Iraq. Then they will travel to Puebla, Mexico, to face Peru on June 8. If Yamal’s injury does keep him out for seven weeks, he might have to sit out those warm-up games. Spain’s World Cup opener against Cape Verde in Atlanta arrives a week later, before matches against Saudi Arabia on June 21 and Uruguay on June 26 (1am June 27 BST). De la Fuente’s side will be expected to comfortably progress through the group stage — giving them an opportunity to manage Yamal’s involvement if required. It is not an ideal situation at all, but it could have been far worse — and Spain will still be monitoring things closely. Spot the pattern. 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