Most footballers pretend they don’t read criticism, yet Spain are actively encouraging it.
The 2010 World Cup winners and 2024 European champions drew their opener 0-0 with Cape Verde and have faced a barrage of abuse.
Coach Luis de la Fuente has taken most of the criticism for his squad selection, bringing along Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams and Victor Munoz despite all three being injured.
Next up is Saudi Arabia, and according to the coach, all the abuse will backfire on their opponents.
“We live in a bubble, but the criticism motivates us because we have very competitive players,” he said.
“Everything that has been said can have an impact. They handle it well and are very, very eager to get on the field.
“Tomorrow they will play very differently. There is no despair.”
He added: “We are motivated, eager to compete again and regain that good feeling.
“We analysed the match to understand where we did well and where we went wrong, without letting it affect us as professionals.”
Explaining Spain’s difficulties, he finished: “Because of our style, the other teams play with very low defensive lines.
“We dominate the matches and the opponents retreat. Each team chooses its weapons, and we need to be more effective.
“In the other game we weren’t precise. We lacked speed and better ball circulation.”
Pique backs Spain as favourites
De la Fuente’s comments have the backing of Spain legend Gerard Pique.
The ex-defender said: “After the draw against Cape Verde we have a better chance of winning the World Cup.
“Spain continue to be the favourite, with the fact that they have Lamine Yamal and Pedri, even if it’s a draw, their aspirations remain the same.”
Marcos Llorente controversy
Conspiracy theorist Marcos Llorente has also backed De la Fuente, but caused some drama in his choice of words.
The Atletico Madrid defender, who is becoming increasingly right-wing with his theories, commented: “There are two sides: those who have unwavering faith in him and those who criticise him.
“It’s the Spanish national team. I don’t understand why there’s no support, whether they’ve won or not.
“Anyone who doesn’t support Luis de La Fuente and isn’t a fan of the national team isn’t Spanish.
“Should I start? Yes, I don’t care. They’ll call me a fascist and all that. The same old story. I don’t care who starts.”
He added: He added: “There’s a bit of everything. There will be those who criticise us harshly, as always, and those who have faith in us, people who know about football and understand that these things can happen.
“We know we have things to improve, and we’re reassured by the fact that we’ve been self-critical. If you’d converted the clear chances you had in the first half, nobody would be talking about this.”
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