Barcelona star Lamine Yamal took advantage of Spain’s victory over the Netherlands to respond with sarcasm to Dutch legend Van der Vaart after the latter attacked him during his analysis of the first leg of the UEFA Nations League quarterfinal.
The European champions needed penalties to secure their place in the semifinals and face France, after the first leg ended 2-2 and the second leg 3-3. Yamal scored a brilliant goal in the second leg but missed a penalty.
After the first leg, Van der Vaart criticized Yamal, saying, “I’m noticing some things that are starting to bother me. His pants are a little low. He’s not putting in much effort. He’s making some superficial gestures.”
After the second leg victory, the 17-year-old posted a photo on his Instagram account with the caption, “Low pants, goal, missed penalty, but we’re in the semifinals.”
Spain’s stars responded with support for Yamal, but the most notable response came from his Barcelona teammate Ferran Torres, who wrote, “Pull your pants down a little more, please.”
