Luis de la Fuente is interested in repeating that he has created a team that is a machine for winning matches. It is good for him to settle scores and cover up the Federation’s reputational crisis.
Definitely, success has gone to Luis de la Fuente’s head . It’s normal when you win so much in such a short time, you do it by putting on a show, you’re annoyed because the Federation can’t find a way to sign you the promised contract improvement and you receive offers from teams and national teams. Within his normality and despite the fact that he characterizes himself as a low-profile coach, his ego and his vindication have to be shown in public in some way.
At the end of a fantastic year and after beating Switzerland with a team full of rotations , Luis de la Fuente sticks out his chest when asked about the difference between his time and that of Luis Enrique. “Before, it was also a great team. The difference is that now we win and we win everything ,” he says bluntly and clearly. In a headless Federation awaiting an indecipherable electoral process, the reins are held by Luis de la Fuente. He is a savior. That is how he feels.
¿En qué se diferencia la @sefutbol de Luis de la Fuente de la de Luis Enrique?#EspañaSuiza #NationsLeague pic.twitter.com/U658hyrm8V
— MARCA (@marca) November 18, 2024
He is the authoritative voice of a Spain that has entered a deep crisis : in sport after the bad World Cup in Qatar and in reputation because of the Jenni Hermoso case and the conflict between the Federation and the Government. The collateral damage is paid by Luis de la Fuente with his salary freeze , but what he cannot avoid is ending the year with a sense of pride. He has become a machine for winning matches.
Luis de la Fuente can look any coach in the world in the eye. His results in the two years he has been in charge of the senior team have catapulted him into the elite , leading Spain to win a European Championship with a brilliant football approach against top-level rivals. Before the success in Germany, he took charge of a team that qualified for the final phase of the Nations League and won a title that is classified as minor. No credit was given to him. The Riojan ends the year with qualification for the quarter-finals of another Nations League, which will be played in March, and in which Spain is seen as the favourite.
Everything is going well for a coach who has created a team that is in a winning dynamic and whose different records for winning matches stand out, with possession and direct play , and the management of footballers who give an excellent performance. In this October window, Spain has played against Denmark and Switzerland without the bulk of the starters who won the Euro Cup.
Pillars like Unai Simón, Carvajal, Le Normand, Rodri and Lamine Yamal were missing in Copenhagen and Spain has shone with Zubimendi, Dani Olmo, Mikel Merino, Oyarzabal, Ayoze… In Tenerife, already classified as first in a group in which they have won all the matches and drawn one, it was the turn of plan C with Yeremy Pino, Marc Casadó, Bryan Zaragoza, Bryan Gil, Pau Cubarsí and debutants like Aitor Paredes, Mingueza, Samu and Pablo Barrios .
He has even given opportunities to the three substitute goalkeepers: David Raya, Remiro and Robert Sánchez . The goalkeeping issue will be heated next year when Unai Simón is in contention and the Riojan has to choose between the Athletic goalkeeper and the Arsenal one. Raya has been magnificent. Blessed problems for a coach who has had unexpected success and rescues Spain from the tension and poor results with which Luis Enrique left and covers up the institutional problems.