Planes saw Yamal come through at Barcelona as a director.
He told Marca: "In all the teams I have liked getting to know the youth players, in Barcelona, too. I saw Gavi in the cadets. To know if they can make it to the first team, it is best to know them from below. I remember Lamine from childhood, with great work from other people.
"From the first time I saw him, I realised that he was different from everything. I am left with his football intelligence and the maturity he demonstrates today. He is a chosen one. In the presentation of grassroots football with (Joan) Laporta, I told him that Lamine was a potential Ballon d'Or winner and I still think so. You have to give it time. He is and was extraordinary."
Asked if Saudi Arabia could produce such a talent, Planes also said: "Yes, of course. We have brought six boys into the first team at 16 and 17 years old. There is one that I really like. Surely someone can make it to the national team. The Saudi footballer has a lot of quality and with the arrival of European knowledge, the level is going to rise.
"They want to do things well, for the final product to be good. There is a lot of process in everything and it makes me see that it is a project that has the World Cup as its goal, but that they are going to do things well."