The best of Lamine Yamal is yet to come at this World Cup, Spain coach Luis de la Fuente warned, ahead of Friday's quarter-final clash with Belgium in Los Angeles.
"We know that the best version of him, the attacking Lamine, is something that we haven't quite seen yet in this World Cup. Not to the level that we're used to," said De la Fuente.
The prodigiously gifted Yamal has just one goal and no assists at the tournament so far, having arrived in the United States still recovering from a late-season injury.
But he has been a constant menace to opposing defenders attacking predominantly down Spain's right flank.
"We were facing a powerhouse of a rival, and the defender who was marking him ultimately had to do so much that he was injured," said De la Fuente.
At still just 18 years of age, Yamal has gained a lesson in "maturity" from the challenges he has faced at this World Cup so far, his coach said.
"He doesn't need extra motivation. You actually sometimes have to calm his intensity. He's very motivated -- he wants to do so much," said De la Fuente.
