The World Cup final on Sunday promises to be an incredible match as past and present generations go head to head. It feels to me like Lionel Messi is passing the torch to Lamine Yamal, who I believe could become the new king of world football in the next 15-20 years.We can talk about tactics and fitness, but ultimately what makes the difference is talent. Even on a day like this, it’s all about ability, and they’re the two most talented players in the world right now. Ahead of Spain vs Argentina, here’s my guide on what to look out for when you watch Messi and Yamal.
The World Cup Final goes through La Masia. pic.twitter.com/FrlKixkFwv
— FC Barcelona (@FCBarcelona) July 18, 2026Get free access to the most comprehensive World Cup coverage in The Athletic appHow Messi looks for spaceMessi always has his eyes peeled, trying to find that pocket of space where he has the second he needs to make a difference. If you watch him on the TV or in the stadium, you’ll see him walking, but he is not walking. He is thinking, calculating. All the time he’s looking around, seeing where the ball might fall, if a team-mate might look to play a pass into space. His Argentina team-mates run themselves into the ground for him. They know that he can make the difference. They don’t mind, that’s OK. When I played with him at Barcelona he had a little more energy. He was tearing about the pitch, hassling, harrying, picking up the ball in deeper spaces and playing with us. Now he’s a little less active physically — that is understandable, aged 39. But mentally, he is just as relentless as ever, and the speed of thought is incomparable to any other footballer in the world.He has much more information stored in his head than anyone else. It is constant. “Am I marked? Can I get free? Where is Julian Alvarez? Where is Giuliano Simeone? Where is Leandro Paredes? If the ball drops here, what can I do to be one step ahead?” He is always looking before receiving the ball — always, always, always. And then, when he does get on the ball in time and space… he is the best player in the history of the game.In the last 25 minutes against England, he was the chief playmaker, causing all of the damage. Even aside from the two assists, he was lining up the crosses, initiating those give and goes, drifting over here, darting back into space, stopping there, asking for the ball, feinting left and right. That is Messi, constantly looking for how to be dangerous. He makes things happen everywhere, even though he’s practically Argentina’s last man in attack. It’s marvellous to watch him play. We are so lucky.Lionel Messi is always in space and always thinking one step ahead (Thomas Coex/AFP via Getty Images)How Yamal’s positioning helps his teamLamine’s positioning is a little more strategic. He’s hanging out on the wing, or drifting into the middle a little bit, but either works because he is a difference-maker on the ball.When he is one-vs-one he is practically unstoppable. The opposition’s biggest worry when they play against Lamine is to not let him get into a one-vs-one situation. If you are a defender you need support against him, and Lamine knows that.That will be Lionel Scaloni’s obsession. He won’t want to let him breathe. He is a threat, the biggest worry for the opposition. Argentina will be all over him, constantly pressuring him. But Lamine is clever. He will think: “One minute, if I have three players marking me, then there will be space on the opposite flank, or there will be a free man somewhere.”When he attracts those defenders over, it opens up space for the likes of Rodri, Fabian Ruiz, Dani Olmo. Yamal is always ready to make a decision to pass.
