Luis de la Fuente was presented this afternoon at the Ciudad del Futbol de Las Rozas as the new national coach, replacing Luis Enrique. In the event there was not the slightest self-criticism of the poor role played by Spain in the World Cup in Qatar and De la Fuente strove to show another, more conciliatory mood than his predecessor. "I don't use social networks. I have my script and my nuances," he said.
The 61-year-old coach, who has been working for the Federation in the lower categories for ten years where he has won various titles, considers himself the ideal man for the position: "I have had eighteen of the players who have gone to the last World Cup. If there is someone who has knowledge about the present and the future of Spanish football, that is me", he assured perhaps in his only display of self-esteem.
The press conference also made it clear that firing Luis Enrique has not been easy. Luis Rubiales, the president of the Federation, acknowledged that he had not spoken with the former coach to announce his non-renewal. He also did not admit that Luis Enrique had asked him to continue. "We got together to talk after the World Cup and I and my team decided that it was time to start a new project." De la Fuente has not spoken with his predecessor either. "We have exchanged messages and he has congratulated me. I have a good relationship with him," he commented.
The team's style of play also came to the fore and De La Fuente proved to be open to everything: "We are not closed to anything. The system adapts and we will add concepts, nuances... we will try to improve and contribute what we believe will help us to improve. I like to dominate the game and have different records but, ultimately, what it is about is being better than the rival".
The new coach came to say the same as to whether he already has a list of players in mind: "All footballers can be selected. To play with Spain you have to have quality, talent and be in good shape. The national team is not a club. Here if you have a bad day you go home. You have to call those who are better at all times".
And he was optimistic: "There is no talent for young Spanish footballers anywhere. There are players who are touched by God's wand, as has happened with Gavi. But I encourage everyone to work to be better every day. Eric García He fits into our model and I like him. Maybe at a certain moment he was put under a lot of pressure, but it's part of football."
De la Fuente also assured that he was delighted that Sergio Busquets had decided to continue in the national team: "He still has a lot to say", and he did not close the doors on Sergio Ramos. "Neither to Ramos nor to any other. Before, to select, it was conditioned by the age of the footballers. Now we are not going to look at age, but at performance," he said.
Luis de la Fuente was only reluctant when talking about the role of Spain in the World Cup. He preferred not to make public what he thinks: "This is not the time to analyze anything. We all wanted the best, but it has not been possible. Winning is very difficult. The analysis will be internal and to improve. Luis Enrique's work has been fantastic", said.
The coach was also asked if it is possible to train penalty kicks: "Everything can be trained in football. Penalties are a part of the game. Not everyone is capable of taking penalties, that's why there are specialists. I like to choose pitchers and I will continue to do so," he said.
Aware that Luis Enrique has been a controversial and controversial coach, De la Fuente appealed to the fans to support the team: "I want closeness. I don't want 48 million coaches and I do want 48 million players. I want to recover the pride of belonging to the national team in the spirit of 2010. To hear again that I am Spanish. I want us to be a team".
Luis de la Fuente, with a contract until 2024, does not set a ceiling: "We can be champions of everything and I will work to achieve it. The ceiling is to reach the top. I know how footballers think. I have not had problems with them There is no vertigo in talking to them. I ask for time to show what we want to do."
