Lamine Yamal will miss the rest of Barcelona’s season with a hamstring injury but is expected to be available for Spain at the World Cup, his club said on Thursday. The 18-year-old limped off during Wednesday’s 1-0 league win over Celta Vigo after scoring the only goal from the penalty spot.
“The tests carried out have confirmed that first-team player Lamine Yamal has a hamstring injury in his left leg (biceps femoris muscle),” Barcelona posted on X. “The player will follow a conservative treatment plan. Lamine Yamal will miss the remainder of the season, and he is expected to be available for the World Cup.“
Victory over Celta moved Barcelona closer to retaining the La Liga title. With six games remaining, they lead the standings on 82 points, nine clear of Real Madrid. Barcelona went ahead in the 38th minute when Lamine Yamal burst in from the right and was brought down by Yoel Lago. The teenager dusted himself down and dispatched the resulting spot-kick with a fierce low strike to the goalkeeper’s left.
However, his celebrations were short-lived. He immediately fell to the turf, clutching his left hamstring, and limped off with the help of the team’s doctors.
Atlético Madrid fell to a 3-2 defeat at lowly Elche, their seventh loss in their past eight matches across all competitions.
Diego Simeone’s side are comfortable in fourth in La Liga and the coach played mostly a reserve side to rest his star names after the draining cup final.
Nicolas González struck twice for the visitors but Elche prevailed with a double from André Silva and a goal from David Affengruber, boosting their survival hopes. Atlético played an hour with 10 men after Thiago Almada was dismissed for pulling back Affengruber.
In Germany treble-chasing Bayern Munich defeated hosts Bayer Leverkusen 2-0 with goals from Harry Kane and Luis Díaz to reach the German Cup final for the first time in six years.
The hosts were no match for the Bavarians, who were fresh from securing the league title on Sunday and in control for much of the game. The second semi-final sees Stuttgart take on Freiburg on Thursday.
Khvicha Kvaratskhelia scored twice as Paris Saint-Germain recovered from their Ligue 1 defeat by Lyon with a 3-0 victory against relegation-threatened Nantes. PSG’s home win keeps them four points above Lens with both clubs having five games left to play. Kvaratskhelia opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 13th minute. Desiré Doué’s brilliant goal doubled the lead on 37 minutes, when Achraf Hakimi played him through before he let fly with a fierce strike from a difficult angle inside the far corner.
Kvaratskhelia grabbed his second after the break, shimmying past two defenders and poking the ball past Anthony Lopes in the Nantes goal.
In Italy Lazio reached the Coppa Italia final after goalkeeper Edoardo Motta saved four penalties to secure a 2-1 shootout victory over Atalanta after a 1-1 draw in Bergamo on Wednesday left the tie level at 3-3 on aggregate.
Motta emerged as the hero in the shootout, saving all but one of the Atalanta attempts, with Kenneth Taylor and Gustav Isaksen finding the net for Lazio to send them through to the final.
The sides began on level terms following a 2-2 draw in Rome in early March, and that score remained the same until the 84th minute when Lazio snatched a lead through Alessio Romagnoli. Mario Pasalic scored a swift equaliser for Atalanta, and after extra time it needed a shootout to settle it.
Lazio will face Inter in the final after they overturned a two-goal deficit to beat Como 3-2 at home on Tuesday. The final is scheduled to take place on 13 May.
