Teenager is embracing role as symbolic face of the club’s return to its historic home
Barcelona winger Lamine Yamal has sent out another message raising anticipating ahead of the club’s long-awaited return to Camp Nou.
On Thursday Yamal updated his Instagram profile photo to a picture of himself holding the Barcelona crest, with the comment: “Montjuic was the beginning. Camp Nou is where history will be written.”
Barcelona last played at Camp Nou in May 2023 before moving to the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys in Montjuic, where they used as a temporary home ground while work continued at their traditional venue.
The club has now secured approval from local authorities to host fixtures at a reduced capacity of 45,401 while the finishing touches are added to the stadium. Saturday’s clash with Athletic Club will be the first match hosted at the renovated ground.
Yamal, who has been recovering from pubalgia and sat out Spain’s recent international games, is expected to be available for the fixture.
Thursday’s Instagram photo comes only days after Yamal posted an image of Camp Nou with the message “Special nights are coming”.
The message quickly circulated among supporters, many of whom have treated Yamal as the symbolic face of the club’s return to its historic home. Two weeks ago, the club hosted an open training session as a pre-welcoming event to the stadium for over 20,000 fans. When the players emerged from the tunnel for the session, Yamal received by far the loudest cheers.
Yamal has played a few games at the Camp Nou, back in 2023. Saturday’s match will be the first opportunity for several other squad members to play at the ground. Fermin Lopez, Marc Casado, Dani Olmo, Pau Cubarsi, Gerard Martin, Joan Garcia, Marc Bernal and Roony Bardghji are all awaiting their debuts at the famous venue.
