Under national coach Luis de la Fuente, Spain is on the verge of winning its fourth European Championship title in the final against England on Sunday (July 14, 2024, live on Das Erste and on sportschau.de). “La Furia Roja”, the red fury, has been at the top of fans’ and experts’ favorites lists since the preliminary round of the European Championship. De la Fuente has been working on the current success for over ten years and is now reaping the fruits of his labor.
It is “very difficult to win a competition like this, but I think there is no team better than us,” said de la Fuente confidently during the tournament in Germany. It is difficult to contradict the 63-year-old’s statement. His team did not concede a goal in the preliminary round, and conceded a maximum of one goal in each of the three games in the knockout round.
Sunday from 9pm live: Spain vs England Arrow right Final Arrow right
Association coach since 2013
Since 2013, de la Fuente, who previously worked mainly as a player and coach in his homeland of northern Spain, has trained young players in the Spanish association. He coached Leipzig’s Alejandro Grimaldo in the U19s and Unai Simon in the U18s. With Rodri and Mikel Merino, he celebrated the U19 European Championship title in 2015. He also had Marc Cucurella and Ferran Torres under his wing. The coach saw his players grow up and develop. And he contributed significantly to their maturation.
It is said that he has expanded the Spanish “Tiki-Taka” to include attacking pressure and variability. Players like Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams are certainly a stroke of luck for any coach, and the coach knows how to use his top players Rodri, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo to their full potential. De la Fuente and his coaching team let them and his “26 geniuses” play tactical variations that can be developed from the preferred 4-3-3 formation. Whether through the center via Rodri and, for example, Olmo and Morata, or through the wings – Spain has many options.
2023 Victory in the Nations League – and now?
De la Fuente is now making the most of it. De la Fuente had already been able to test the job as the main person in charge of the “Selección” (“Selection”) in 2021, when his U21 team stepped in for the senior team in the midst of the corona pandemic and celebrated a 4-0 victory in a friendly against Lithuania. In 2022, he succeeded the previously extremely unlucky Luis Enrique and made a name for himself in 2023 with the triumph in the Nations League. Few in Spain really believed he could do it – he lacked the reputation.
Critics fall silent
De la Fuente was heavily criticized for his closeness to the former association president Luis Rubiales – especially after he applauded Rubiales’ defense speech after his assault on Jennifer Hermoso. Only after de la Fuente apologized did the waters calm down – and today only his success counts in Spain.
The association also agreed: early this year, well before the European Championship tournament, the coach’s contract was extended until 2026. His salary was reportedly tripled – to 1.6 million euros per year, plus bonuses. The players would each receive 435,000 euros in the event of victory in the final against England – and the coach is sure to receive a hefty sum as well.
