Karim Benzema has put Lamine Yamal first in his 2026 Kopa Trophy ranking, and the vote fits the season he has put together. The Barcelona winger won the award for the third consecutive year, and at 19 he is still setting the pace in the under-21 race.
Benzema's ballot
Benzema selected Yamal ahead of Barcelona team-mate Pau Cubarsí and Ayyoub Bouaddi. It is a clean endorsement from a former Ballon d'Or winner, and one that lines up with the scale of Yamal's output in 2026.
The numbers are heavy enough on their own. He has 10 goals and 7 assists in 11 La Liga appearances this year, along with an 8.19 league rating. His Champions League rating is even higher at 8.5.
Why the big-game debate is still thin
The criticism around Yamal is that he can go quiet in major matches. The return against elite opposition does not really support that line. He has faced Real Madrid 10 times since breaking into the first team and has three goals and three assists in those games.
Against Atletico Madrid, he has two goals and three assists in 11 appearances. In 13 matches against major national teams, he has five goals and two assists. Trivela's conclusion was simple enough: the combined figures do not back up the idea that Yamal routinely disappears in big fixtures.
The vote from Benzema only adds more weight to that reading. Yamal is still the player the Kopa Trophy field has to measure itself against, and his season numbers explain why the conversation keeps coming back to him.
Written by Daniel Hartley with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 3 outlets. How we work →
