“Kylian Mbappe asked for my jersey" - Barcelona star claims new Real Madrid signing wanted his jersey after EURO 2024 clash

Barcelona star Lamine Yamal has claimed that Kylian Mbappe wanted his shirt after the two sides met at Euro 2024. Mbappe and his France team suffered a 2-1 defeat to Spain in the semi-finals on Tuesday, July 9.

It was a game in which the Spanish teenager was brilliant and bagged an incredible long-range goal to equalize for La Roja in the 21st minute. Spain gained momentum before Dani Olmo put his team ahead just four minutes later.

Speaking to MARCA in a recent interview, Yamal claimed that the 2018 World Cup winner asked for his shirt. He said (via Fabrizio Romano):

"Kylian Mbappe asked for my jersey after the game."

Yamal enjoyed a breakthrough season before Euro 2024, making 50 appearances across competitions for his club, bagging seven goals and 10 assists.

He even came up against Mbappe in the UEFA Champions League quarter-finals, where Paris Saint-Germain ultimately prevailed. Following the Frenchman's move to Real Madrid, the pair will face off in the seasons going ahead.

Yamal is contracted with the Catalan giants until the summer of 2026. Meanwhile, Mbappe has signed a five-year deal at the Santiago Bernabeu after deciding to move this summer.

So far at the European Championships, Yamal has made six appearances for Spain, bagging a goal and three assists.

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Gary Lineker compares Lamine Yamal's international impact to Barcelona legend

Pundit Gary Lineker admitted that even the great Lionel Messi hadn't burst onto the international scene the way Lamine Yamal has done at such a young age.

By the time the Argentine legend made his senior international debut, he was already 18 years old. Comparing his arrival in international football to Yamal's, who made his senior Spain debut at the age of 16, Lineker told The Guardian:

"Even (Lionel) Messi didn't emerge internationally till his late teens. What we're seeing here is something very, very special. How special, we will have to wait and see. To do what he is doing: I can't quite get my head around it."

Messi won the 2022 World Cup and also has a Copa America trophy to his name. He can add another Copa America title this year, with Argentina set to face Colombia in the final on Sunday, July 14.

Yamal, meanwhile, is in the running to win Euro 2024, with Spain set to face England in the final on Sunday.