Despite the high stakes, Yamal remains confident in his ability to dismantle the notoriously rigid Atletico Madrid defence. He even went as far as jokingly asking Diego Simeone for a tactical advantage to help him influence the game early on. "I find myself very well, with a lot of desire. I am motivated for that. I hope to be able to make the difference… that Cholo does me a favour and puts me one-on-one against some player," the youngster said.
His desire for one-on-one situations was echoed by coach Hansi Flick, who was asked if he is considering using the teenager in a different role in order to surprise the Rojiblancos.
"Lamine has been performing very well in recent matches, I'm very happy with him, and what I tell him is that he has to keep doing these things," he said. "He's one of the best in one-on-one situations, and we have to help him and give him the opportunity. We have to play as a team; that's the key tomorrow. I'm not worried about individual performances anymore. We have many high-quality players, but so do they. I've said that matches are often decided by moments, and I hope that one goes our way tomorrow."