Amid the turmoil caused by Nico Williams's contract renewal with Athletic Club, Barça's circle has experienced a new episode of cryptic messages and crossed reactions. This time, it was Lamine Yamal, the blaugrana gem, who set social media ablaze with a post on his Instagram account that sparked a wide range of interpretations, especially among fans and the most influential pundits in the soccer scene.
The Morad verse that sparked controversy
The image Lamine Yamal shared in his Instagram story did not go unnoticed. With more than 36 million followers watching his every move, Barça's winger posted an excerpt from a song by the popular singer Morad: "I've achieved what's mine and I haven't asked anyone, and I haven't even had to humble myself. I've helped my own, I'm still in the street, tell me who the hell is going to take it from me". In the footballer's post, this verse from the song can be seen on his home television.
The phrase, taken from a well-known track in the urban scene, was quickly linked by many to the recent "betrayal" by Nico Williams, who after weeks of talks and promises finally decided to renew with Athletic, leaving Barça and several teammates surprised and disappointed.
José Álvarez's interpretation: "I think it's a message to a teammate who left him hanging"
On the show El Chiringuito, Lamine Yamal's post was analyzed. José Álvarez, a regular contributor and someone very close to the blaugrana environment, offered his view: "I think it's a message to a teammate who left him hanging," he explained live, when Josep Pedrerol directly asked if the message was aimed at Nico Williams.
Álvarez went further in his analysis, linking the song's lyrics to the Nico Williams case: "I'm interpreting it subjectively, but it's when Nico Williams offers himself to his teammates saying he wants to go to Barcelona. Nico tells his teammates, including Lamine Yamal. 'I've achieved what's mine and I haven't asked anyone.' Nico asks them... 'And I haven't even had to humble myself.' This goes along the lines that in the end, Nico Williams is the one who went both to the players and to Barcelona to beg, to say he wants to play for Barça."
The veiled criticism would then be toward the fact that, while Lamine Yamal has forged his path at the club without asking or begging for anything, Nico would have insisted on his desire to wear the blaugrana jersey only to ultimately surprise everyone by staying in Bilbao.
Impact on the locker room and the culé fanbase
The confusion after Nico Williams's decision has been total in Barça's locker room. According to Álvarez, not even the closest teammates were warned in time: "Lamine Yamal and all those teammates found out that Nico Williams wasn't coming to Barcelona and was staying in Bilbao with Athletic's tweet." The feeling of having been left out of the final decision has increased the discomfort and left the culé fanbase with the sense of a missed opportunity.
Lamine Yamal's own message, with the verse "I've helped my own, I'm still in the street, tell me who the hell is going to take it from me," reinforces the idea of pride in the path taken, without duplicity or regrets. For many, it's a declaration of principles: he remains at Barça, he has the support of his people, and no one will be able to take away what he has earned.