Lamine Yamal's age at international debut compared to Messi, Ronaldo, Mbappe and more

It's always one of the purest and most exciting moments in football when a young player gets the chance to make their debut for club or country and they shine, immediately making a name for themselves in the process.

We've seen it countless times over the years, but it never gets any less heart-warming. One player who has made their way into the history books is Barcelona youngster Lamine Yamal, who got some minutes for Spain during this international break.

When he came on for Spain to face Georgia in a Euro 2024 qualifier, Yamal was 16 years and 57 days old, becoming the youngest player in Spain's history to make their international debut. He smashed the record Gavi set not too long ago, which was 17 years and 62 days, when he was introduced for Dani Olmo in the 44th minute.

Spain coach Luis de la Fuente has spoken glowingly about Yamal ahead of the matches, saying: "Lamine Yamal seemed very good to me, watching him on TV. But now that I'm working with him, I think he's much better. He is a 16-year-old player, but the form he has on the field seems much more mature. He is a different player with a promising future."

He is an exciting talent who could be one of Barcelona's stars of the future, but where does his international debut rank with some of the best players in the world right now?

Cristiano Ronaldo

18 years, 6 months, 16 days

A player who has certainly made their mark in international football's record books is Cristiano Ronaldo. He has scored a remarkable 123 goals for Portugal ahead of the current international break, which is more than anyone else in the world.

What is remarkable for Yamal is he has an 18-month head-start over the Portuguese forward, meaning there are a number of records he can target if his career continues to develop as quickly as it has.

Ronaldo's debut came against Kazakhstan in August 2003 when he took the place of Luis Figo from the bench. He didn't manage to score but was very impressive in the 45 minutes he was on the pitch. It was clear Ronaldo would become a star, and so he did.

Lionel Messi

18 years, 1 month, 25 days

The entire narrative around Lionel Messi and his international career is different now he has lifted the World Cup with Argentina. He has always been the player to emulate at club level, but those desperate to criticise would always point to his lack of success at World Cups.

His journey with Argentina started just over a year later than Yamal's has with Spain. Messi got his time with the Albiceleste underway against Hungary on 17 August 2005. Argentina won 2-1 but he could not find the back of the net.

It actually took until Messi's sixth game - against Croatia - to score for his country. He now has 104 goals and counting for Argentina.

Kylian Mbappe

18 years, 3 months and 5 days

A player who seems destined to dominate the international scene for a very long time, Mbappe was only a penalty shoot-out away from becoming a two-time World Cup winner at the age of 23.

Even still, he started playing senior international football a year and three months later than Yamal. The current France captain was first called up back in March 2017 shortly after his 18th birthday and made his debut against Luxembourg. It wasn't until 31 August 2017 that he scored his first international goal in a World Cup qualifier against the Netherlands.

Those early performances saw him called up to the 2018 World Cup squad and while football fans already knew he was a really talented player, Mbappe fully announced himself to the entire world in spectacular fashion.

The Paris Saint-Germain forward scored four goals at the tournament and was instrumental in France winning the World Cup. He also got a hat-trick in the 2022 final against Argentina before the penalty shoot-out defeat.

Younger international debuts than Lamine Yamal

There are some players who got minutes for their country at an even younger age than Yamal. One is a very old tale from Ireland about Sam Johnston who was supposedly 15 years and 153 days old when he played in his country's first ever international fixture, a 13-0 loss against England in 1882. Many say he is still the youngest European international.

A more modern tale is that of Norway and Arsenal's Martin Odegaard, who debuted for the national team at the age of 15 years and 253 days. He played the whole 90 minutes in a friendly against the United Arab Emirates.

Samuel Eto'o was getting towards his 16th birthday when he made his first appearance for Cameroon, but that is nothing compared to Lucas Knecht. He was 14 years and two days old when he played in Northern Mariana Islands' 9-0 East Asian Football Championship preliminary round loss to Guam on 1 April 2007.

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