Barcelona's Flick praises Yamal, 'not a kid,' as title beckons - ESPN

BARCELONA, Spain — Barcelona coach Hansi Flick lauded Lamine Yamal's grown-up performance after the teenager helped his side move to the brink of the LaLiga title by coming from behind to beat Real Madrid 4-3 on Sunday.

Yamal, 17, scored Barça's second goal, angling a brilliant shot into the corner from just inside the area, as they recovered from conceding two early Kylian Mbappé's strikes to lead 4-2 at halftime.

Mbappé completed his hat trick after the break to set up a nervy finish, but Barça held on at the Olympic Stadium to move seven points clear of their Clásico rivals with just three games to play.

«He's not a kid,» Flick said at a news conference when asked about Yamal taking on so much responsibility at such a young age. «He's doing good. He has the confidence, the self-confidence, the belief in what he can do. Also, he's very clever.

»He brought us back [into the match] today with his goal, a very important goal. This, at 17 years old, it's really high quality. This is what we want from him."

On another day, Yamal might have ended the game with a handful of assists, too, although some wayward finishing from his teammates — notably Raphinha, who still managed to score twice — meant the teenager had only his goal to show for another brilliant display.

Barça now need just two points to win LaLiga. They could claim the title Thursday, when they travel to local rivals Espanyol, or even Wednesday if Madrid drop points against Mallorca.

«No, it's football,» Flick added when asked if winning the league was now a foregone conclusion after a fourth Clásico victory this season. «You don't know what happens, but we're in a good position. We need [two] more points. This is what we want to make as soon as possible.»

If