Top five youngest players to represent Spain senior football team

Barcelona youngsters have been sensational over the past seasons

Spain forward Lamine Yamal became the youngest player to ever represent the country after featuring in a European Championship qualifier against Georgia. Lamine Yamal is also eligible to play for Morocco and Equatorial Guinea through his parents, but he has always represented Spain, the country of his birth, at the youth level. He made the final decision to play for the country's senior side at the end of August following a meeting in Barcelona with delegates from the Royal Spanish Football Federation.

It has been a remarkable year for the teenager, who became the youngest player to feature in LaLiga for Barça when he made his debut for the club in April. Here is a look at the other players who are ranked amongst the youngest debutants for the Spanish national team.

Youngest players to represent Spain

5. Bojan Krkic - 18 years & 13 days

Bojan Krkić has never reached the level he was expected to reach when he made his debut for Barcelona. One of the best strikers to have ever played in La Masia, Bojan never lived up to the expectations and with a career that has seen him play in the Serie A, the Bundesliga and the Premier League. He made his full Spanish debut on 10 September 2008 under Vicente del Bosque against Armenia, where he came on during the last ten minutes for Santi Cazorla and played on the right wing for his only senior cap. Bojan officially retired at the age of 32.

4. Ansu Fati - 17 years, 10 months & 3 days

Fati's playing style has been compared with that of former Barcelona player Lionel Messi. A versatile forward, Fati is capable of playing in any attacking position. Fati boasts a powerful frame and brings a physical approach to the game which is often lacking among a technically gifted Barcelona side.

Fati was originally eligible to represent Guinea-Bissau at the international level but did not represent the nation of his birth at any level. He made his full international debut on 3 September 2020, coming off the bench for the second 45 minutes in a 1–1 draw to Germany.

3. Ángel Zubieta - 17 years, 9 months & 9 days

He started his playing career in the 1935–36 season for Athletic Bilbao at the age of 17. His impressive performances earned him a call-up to the Spain national team in 1936. His exceptional performance impressed everyone and booked his ticket for the Spain national football team. 

Angel Zubieta played his first international match for Spain amidst the explosion of the Civil War in 1936. He remained the youngest footballer to play for Spain for about 85 years. Due to the Spanish Civil War, his career got distracted and he started playing for the Basque Country national football team. After retiring as a player Zubieta took up management.

2. Gavi - 17 years, 2 months & 1 day

On 30 September 2021, Gavi received a surprise call-up to the senior Spain national team by the manager Luis Enrique. He made his debut in their UEFA Nations League semi-final win against Italy on 6 October, becoming the second youngest player to ever represent Spain at senior level. Gavi was named in Spain's squad for the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, in which he started in all four matches. With his goal against Costa Rica in Spain's first game of the tournament, Gavi became the third youngest player to score in a World Cup match.

1. Lamine Yamal - 16 years, 1 month & 26 days

Barcelona's youthful talent, sixteen-year-old Lamine Yamal, has achieved the distinction of becoming the youngest player ever to be selected for Spain's senior squad. He made his debut for the national team and also scored a goal in the 74th minute of the game, which ended in a 7-1 scoreline in favour of Spain.

De la Fuente praised Yamal's exceptional skills and his impressive track record in Spain's youth teams. The young prodigy has rapidly ascended the ranks of Spanish soccer, leaving a mark at every level of the game. Yamal's journey to the senior squad began with his standout performance at the 2023 Under-17 Euros, where he not only represented Spain but also emerged as the tournament's joint-top scorer, netting an impressive four goals.