Lamine Yamal has become the next big thing of football after having an incredible breakthrough for Barcelona and Spain. The teenage sensation helped La Roja clinch the Euro 2024 title, scoring a sensational goal in the semi-final and also providing four assists – managing impressive statistics for a 17-year-old.
The Barcelona sensation has also become one of the most recognizable faces in football after his heroics in the Euros. He’s definitely a beloved figure in the majority of Spain and fans are always trying to snap pictures with him. Amid the ongoing craze for Yamal, it turns out that some people managed to unearth his doppelganger in the same country!
A doppelganger is someone who is almost the exact look alike of another person. Well, it turns out that a Lamine Yamal lookalike is currently playing for Real Betis’ youth academy. Known as ‘Raul Gonzalez’ this kid is literally the same age as Yamal (17) and got his first claim to fame after some kids watching him play in a small Spanish town (Avila) recorded a video of his appearance, which became viral on social media.
Raul Gonzalez basking on his newfound fame in Barcelona
Gonzalez looks almost the copied version of Lamine, having the same kind of hairstyle, build and facial features as well. He plays as a winger for Betis’ youth team and also appears to have the same movement style as the Barcelona star. While Lamine’s parents are from Morocco and Equatorial Guinea, Raul’s parents are from the Dominican Republic.
Gonzalez’s mother Gladys spoke to La Voze Galicia about the crazy similarity in appearance between her son and Lamine, stating: “How can they look so similar, having such different origins? “Raúl was born in Móstoles. But both his father and I are Dominican. How genetics are! It’s something very rare and very difficult to see. They look so similar, despite the fact that each one’s parents have such different origins… If before I already believed that we all have a double, now much more. I already take it for granted”
Raul likes to dribble with the ball and mimic Yamal in terms of providing something special in the final third too. His dad, Juan Carles, has spoken about his son’s playing style by stating: “He also plays as a forward like Lamine. And he dribbles quite well. He is very fast, he crosses, he shoots. In that sense, he has a similar playing system to the Barça player.
“The thing is that we already know what happens in these cases. It is very difficult to be a top football star. Very few make it. But he plays well and he doesn’t let the ball burn his feet, which is very important. He holds it well. And then, the truth is that the resemblance to Lamine Yamal is astonishing.”
Not only that, but Gonzalez even likes to mimic Lamine’s popular dance celebration with Nico Williams – the one which gained fame at the Euro 2024.
Raul Gonzalez has also revealed that he’s needed police protection when he visited a Barca shop in Cebreros (in Avila) due to his sheer rising popularity, as he stated: “The truth is, no. I am very shy. Yes, yes, I appear on social media. I am there. Millions of people have seen it. Before, on TikTok I only had a hundred users and now I have 13,000. There were a lot of people and everyone asked me for photos and a lot of things. A police patrol even stopped and offered to escort me.”
The ‘viral’ Real Betis star was called to a show hosted by El Chiringuito after gaining prominence in Spain. He seems to be surprisingly cool and open about being Yamal’s lookalike and has admitted to being a Barca fan himself.
He told El Chiringuito: “I am told this many times (that he resembles Yamal), in almost every stadium I go to, people always sing to me and ask me for photos, and at parties even more; I play in the same position as him, I am a Barca fan and my idol is Lamine.”
“I’m doing great, I like people to think I’m him: I know more people, I’m better known… I like people to recognise me on the street.”
His mother Gladys has revealed that some fans tried to take pictures of ihm by mistaking him for Lamine when they visited a Barca club shop.
She’s also revealed about the reaction from people after Yamal’s heroics in Euro 2024, explaining: “He always liked to play football. Since he was little, when he was 8 years old. And after Lamine Yamal became famous, the kids around here started telling him that he looked a lot like him. And that’s how it all started.”
“When the Euro Cup started, even more so. And when Lamine scored the goal, imagine. People went crazy. Children and everyone were already stopping him to take photos with him. Asking if he looks just like Lamine Yamal and all that kind of thing.”
“That was incredible. Everyone believed it. We went through the centre and to the Barcelona Football Club shop and everyone was saying: ‘A photo, Lamine Yamal!’ Everything collapsed. There were so many people. And as he said, even the police offered to escort him… well, well. It was incredible. One of the officers got out of the car and asked us if we needed help and if we wanted him to escort us to the official shop.”
The Barcelona winger is yet to respond to this freaky discovery, but is probably going to find it really funny.
Gladys, however, is hopeful Yamal will acknowledge Raul Gonzalez and perhaps even link up with him, as she stated: “We don’t know where he will end up. But if it is good for him, then we are very happy. I am very sure. And I imagine that he will have also received the video and will have seen it. But for the moment, he has not contacted me. The truth is that I would love to, it would be incredible.”
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