- Rafael van der Vaart had castigated Yamal’s character and performances
- After scoring against the Netherlands, the youngster hit back on Instagram
- LISTEN NOW: It’s All Kicking Off! Is England’s squad good enough to win the World Cup?
Spain superstar Lamine Yamal hit back at Rafael van der Vaart with a mocking post after helping to knock Netherlands out of the Nations League on Sunday.
Yamal bagged a stunning strike in extra-time but missed his penalty in Spain’s 5-4 shoot-out win as La Roja advanced to the semi-finals.
Van der Vaart has become notorious for his stinging criticism of players and had taken aim after the first leg finished 2-2.
The former Tottenham star blasted Yamal as ‘superficial,’ ‘not making much effort,’ wearing his pants ‘a little lower,’ and claimed that he struggled against left-back Jorrel Hato.
And Yamal, still only 17, gave as good as he got as he turned Van Der Vaart’s words against him.
‘Pants down, one goal, missed penalty, and in the semifinals. Hehehehehe, let’s go Spain!’ he wrote on Instagram.
Lamine Yamal (left) bit back at Rafael van der Vaart (right) after the outspoken Dutch pundit and former player branded the 17-year-old
Yamal, 17, scored a stunner as Spain beat the Netherlands on penalties in the Nations League
It’s hard to justify too much criticism of Yamal considering that he has hit 13 goals and provided 17 assists this season, with Barcelona in contention for LaLiga and Champions League glory.
The youngster has already eclipsed his numbers from last season, a campaign which saw him make headlines around Europe with his performances at Euro 2024.
But that didn’t stop Van Der Vaart, who also used to don the colours of Real Madrid, from lashing out at him recently.
‘Yamal didn’t seem to take well to facing Jorrel Hato. These are things I notice: I see things that are starting to bother me a bit. Pants a little lower, not making much effort, gestures a little superficial,’ Van der Vaart told NOS.
‘That’s when I think: if you’re that young, you should be happy with every minute you play for Spain.
‘No matter how good you are, at that age, you have to prove it every minute and in every game.
‘But that doesn’t change the fact that Hato simply had him in his pocket.’
Spain will face France in the Nations League semi-finals after advancing from their thrilling 5-5 draw with the Netherlands on spot-kicks.
Sunday provided a feast of goals, with 21 goals being scored across the four ties.
France edged past Croatia on penalties after recovering from a 2-0 first-leg deficit, Portugal beat Denmark 5-2 after extra-time to overturn a 1-0 disadvantage, and Italy came from 3-0 down against Germany to draw 3-3 but were still dumped out 5-4 on aggregate.
