Spain, De la Fuente decides: nobody will play more than 270 minutes

On Tuesday evening, 6 October, at 20:45, Luis de la Fuente’s Spain will face Croatia. This is the fourth and final Nations League match. The reigning European and world champions go into this match as big favourites, after Croatia were beaten 0-7 by England.

Despite their undisputed dominance of the group, De la Fuente is determined to keep the standard high. Here is his reflection on their next opponents: “They are a fantastic team with super players. 7-0? An unexpected case, like Brazil’s defeat to Germany at the 2014 World Cup or Spain’s 6-0 against Germany”.

“We will be motivated and we will enjoy playing in atmospheres like these. It is fantastic to feel the passion and support of the crowd, whether for or against”. One passage of the comments concerned the coach’s possible technical and tactical options: “Yamal? I have already spoken about how difficult it is to play four matches. We have to field a team that is in perfect condition. I would like to underline one important thing: nobody will play more than 270 minutes. Yamal has played two of the three matches, as has Laporte. We are playing for qualification”.