INGLEWOOD, Calif. – Coach Luis de la Fuente said he “loves” Lamin Yamal’s “optimism and confidence” after the star boasted Spain will be “almost unstoppable” once they reach their best form at the World Cup.
Spain will play Austria at SoFi Stadium on Thursday in the round of 16, topping their group but having failed to produce their best results so far, unlike other leading candidates such as France.
In a radio interview this week, Yamal, who has now recovered from a pre-tournament injury, said that “once we succeed… we will be almost unstoppable” and claimed that Spain are “the only national team expected to play really well” despite disappointing Cape Verde 0-0 and then beating Saudi Arabia 4-0 and Uruguay by 1:0.
“I think he’s an optimistic player, confident in his abilities and the abilities of his teammates,” De la Fuente said at Wednesday’s pre-match press conference. “We know what our potential is. We know how far we can go. The words (Yamal) in their context seem very positive to me. It conveys optimism, confidence, security, and I love that.”
Yamal played just 19 minutes against Cape Verde before scoring an early goal in 45 minutes against Saudi Arabia, but then struggled in the 76th minute against Uruguay.
“Now Lamine can play whatever we ask of him,” De la Fuente said when asked if the Barcelona winger would be able to play 90 minutes on Thursday. “We have, as always, been very cautious about the recovery of all players.
“It’s not the same as playing a very demanding game, very intense and fast, that you can only play for half an hour, and other games that are more convenient and that you can play for 70 minutes. Lamin is really good. You saw how happy he was to play.”
Austria coach Ralf Rangnick acknowledged Yamal’s immeasurable talent but said his team’s job was to defend, not watch, the Spanish winger.
“He’s a great player and will be for the next 12, 13, 14 years or even longer if he stays healthy and has a good head on his shoulders,” Rangnick said on Wednesday. “If you look at (Lionel) Messi, he can play a lot of matches. He is one of the players we will be watching very closely tomorrow. We’ll try not to give him space when he starts dribbling. He’s a player that all the fans love to watch, but our job is to make sure he has as little possession as possible.”
De la Fuente gave an upbeat update on the injuries of strikers Nico Williams and Jeremi Pinault, who were both injured against Uruguay, and Victor Muñoz, who has not yet played in this World Cup.
“Yeremi’s recovery has been miraculous,” De la Fuente said. “After the game it looked like a broken collarbone, but it wasn’t. With his character and courage, he returned to training completely normal.
“Viktor also trains normally, but hasn’t competed for some time. Niko was in great shock, he thought he was seriously injured after the game, but that was not the case. “Moderate discomfort prevents him from playing tomorrow, but we hope he will be there for the next game if we get through.”
De la Fuente said he was even more positive about Spain’s tournament prospects than before the competition began.
“As time goes on, I believe in this team even more,” De La Fuente said. “I always believed in this team. For me they are the best in the world. As the tournament progresses, we see equality of results.
“I’m still just as demanding, just as realistic, but also more optimistic every day.”