Luis de la Fuente: "A Spain-Brazil could make a World Cup final"

Rarely does a friendly match raise so much expectation.

Oliver Thansan
Oliver Thansan
24 March 2024 Sunday 16:27
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Luis de la Fuente: "A Spain-Brazil could make a World Cup final"

Rarely does a friendly match raise so much expectation. The Spanish team lives calmly in Las Rozas, but aware that tension is knocking at the door. “It's only the tenth time we've faced Brazil, imagine if it's important. It could be the semi-final or the final of a World Cup,” Luis de la Fuente challenged journalists in advance of the duel that will host the renovated Santiago Bernabéu.

Always calm, the Spanish coach did not want to focus on the defense of Vinícius, the name that dominated his press conference. “We are concerned about all of Brazil, it has a list of spectacular footballers. In the defensive aspect you have to become strong by minimizing your rivals,” he recalled.

The Riojan coach, who confirmed that Rodri will be in the game after being absent from the last training sessions due to family problems, wanted to highlight the players who act as right backs, up to three in this last list, one of the positions that seems most Take Carvajal as the only indisputable one. "I am very calm in this sense, the three players we have offer me absolute guarantee - the other two are Pedro Porro and Jesús Navas -, we have the demarcation very well covered," the Rioja native calmed down.

For his part, Carvajal himself also stopped at the Villalonga Hall in Ciudad del Fútbol and gave some clues to stop Vinícius, his teammate at Real Madrid and rival this Tuesday at the Bernabéu. “With a player like him there are no clear instructions, he is capable of overwhelming anyone. You have to try to be close to him, cover his spaces and not take the threats, temporize and wait for help,” listed the one from Leganés.

The full-back, one of the oldest in the Spanish team, also spoke about racism, the fight against which is the focus of the duel against Brazil. “I don't think Spain is a racist country, we have a very high level of integration. “I come from a humble neighborhood in Leganés and I have grown up with kids of all nationalities and I have never had any problems, I have many friends from that time,” he explained.