The withdrawal of Busquets from the Spanish national team has turned all the spotlight towards Rodrigo Hernández Rodri (Madrid, 1996), called to be his natural successor on and off the pitch. A huge challenge that the Manchester City mastermind takes on not only with his usual calm, but also with great enthusiasm. Like so many other teammates, these days he has reunited with Luis de la Fuente, with whom he won the European under 19 eight years ago.
What kind of atmosphere is there at the beginning of this concentration?
Very good. I see old colleagues again that I haven't seen for a long time, many people I had matched with in the lower categories.
There almost everyone agreed with Luis de la Fuente...
Many of us have been champions with him and we have very good memories of him, so we are very excited about this new stage.
Define selector.
He is a very honest and sincere coach, he always goes straight and has a big heart. His work methodology is very serious and rigorous.
How is the treatment with the footballers?
He gives us a lot of freedom and lets us express our virtues on the field, always within a rigor of what he is looking for. He is a very ambitious coach.
What was the first message he conveyed to them?
Especially the one about wanting to create a team: because a selection is easy to make, you take some players and call them up, what is difficult is to form a solid block, that works regularly.
What will Spain play now?
We've only been training together for a few days and I can't say much about it.
You must sense something...
Well, maybe we see a team that is more incisive, more vertical, and that takes care of more details like the blocked ball. We will extend more in the attack and shoot more from outside the area. Maybe without so much possession, but without giving up our identity.
After playing the World Cup as a central player, are you here as a midfielder?
(laughs) In principle, yes!
How was the Qatar experience?
It became quite a challenge. If I'm honest it's something I wouldn't have imagined, but football puts you in these situations and I think I responded very well in a position that's not mine.
How did you adapt?
I did an intensive exercise to clarify concepts in a very short space of time.
Did Luis Enrique help him?
I did it on my own, with the people around me. With images of Piqué and Sergio Ramos, it was important to absorb as much as possible.
Do you have the feeling that Luis Enrique left through the back door of the national team?
I was sad how the World Cup ended, I think the group gave for more. From there, with the coach we played finals and semi-finals in several championships, but football is decided by details and the coin did not fall on our side.
At 26 years old, he is now one of the veterans of the national team, how does he take on this role?
Well, it's another challenge, to be a mirror, an example for the guys who come new and for those who have been around for less time. I still consider myself young but time passes and you gain experience which is important.
After many years, Busquets has stepped aside and everything points to you having to fill his void.
Yes, I assume so. He was the captain and for me the figure of the pivot is essential in a team, so it will be up to me to take his place and exercise leadership on and off the field.
What is left after so many years by his side?
Whenever you share a team with a player of this level you feed back and I think we made each other better.
Was there much competition between you?
The demand was very high, and when one did not play, the other did. This is always enriching for the team. But apart from everything, I have taken away a great friendship, he has become a friend.
Is Håland's absence for this Saturday's debut a relief?
From a sporting point of view, no doubt. But I spoke to him the other day and he doesn't seem to have anything serious, which is perfect because he's my club mate and we'll need him until the end of the season.
What's it like off the pitch?
People see him as very old, but he is still a 22-year-old kid who does the same stupid things as people his age.
He seems to speak with knowledge...
I have him next to me in the City dressing room and he has a great relationship with everyone, he is not a cold person, as some people think. He is very smart.
He has shown that he is a beast in the matches, is it the same in training?
There he eases the gas a little, he also had to adapt because the demands of the matches in the Premier League are very high and the training serves to recover, not to go all out.
Pep Guardiola has always liked to play without a pure new...
The arrival of Håland has meant a big change for us and we have had to adapt many game situations. He's had to do that too because we've been playing with false nine for many years and he's a pure nine, so we've demanded that he improve in situations like receiving between the lines or dropping to the wing, even though his role is in the area
There are people who describe every season that Guardiola doesn't win the Champions League as a failure...
The data and titles we continue to win every year are there. It is obvious that we all want to win the Champions League, we are on that path.
Thorns have been put in their way this year...
We have had a very nice draw, with qualifiers that any footballer would want to play even if they are complicated.
In Spain, the controversies with the VAR continue, do you like it?
For me it's a tool without which I wouldn't imagine playing today. It protects you from any type of error.
What do you think of Real Madrid doubting the system after Asensio's goal was disallowed in the classic for offside?
I would never doubt the system. I would encourage it to be improved, but when the lines are drawn you have to trust them, just as in a trial you trust what a judge dictates. It's a math thing, there's no going back. I understand that there is controversy in a dubious penalty but not in offside issues.
But there are still competitions that are played without VAR...
Yes, and playing like that makes you feel very vulnerable, it's not a pleasant feeling. You are on the field and you feel that everything depends on the referee's decision, that there is no going back. This is why VAR is so important.
