After ending more than a decade without titles for Spanish football, having brilliantly won the Nations League in 2023, Luis de la Fuente (Haro, 1961) faces his greatest professional challenge on a bench in a month, the European Championship in Germany. A few days after revealing the list of the 26 chosen footballers, the coach receives La Vanguardia in the RFEF Football City smiling, friendly and convinced of his ideas.
How does Luis de la Fuente’s day-to-day life go?
There is a lot of activity now. Fundamentally, the job at hand is to follow in detail all the performances of the players who are likely to be selected. We are especially concerned about the physical condition of all of them because in terms of football we know what they can all give, but any injury that occurs now would barely have time to recover.
How many games do you watch a day?
In a week we see an average of 60 or 70. Not all 90 minutes, we have tools that allow us to follow a specific player with a video of about 10 or 12 minutes. But, in the end, every day we have five or six different games.
Is the list clear?
If right now, for some reason, I had to give it, I’m 26, yes. That is why we trust that there will be no setbacks so that this first idea will not be greatly altered.
Will you miss Gavi very much?
He is a unique footballer, very important for Barça and for the national team in all aspects. On a football level we are not going to discover it, but perhaps people do not know that on a human level he is almost more important; He is a player who is very loved by all of his teammates and gave us a lot of life. He is going to be a very important loss because of everything he generated.
You were even blamed for his injury…
It was only for a few hours, but it infuriated me. I got to know the most miserable part of human beings, although then everything returned to normal. I have an exceptional relationship with Gavi and his entourage, and injuries are unfortunately part of football.
Are you grateful that UEFA has expanded the Euro Cup squads to 26 players?
I had defended that position both in UEFA and in FIFA. But as long as everyone could be summoned. It is different if you have to discard, but if you have everyone, it is interesting, it offers you many more variants and solutions and it takes away problems because everyone is committed.
How does Real Madrid playing in the Champions League final affect the team’s preparation?
It is something that we celebrate, and I wish there were more Spanish teams in the different finals. It doesn’t affect us much, it will only delay the arrival of those involved for a few days. But it’s not just the Champions League. Laporte is also competing in the Saudi Cup final, and if we call him up, he will find himself in a similar situation. But after so many months of competition, arriving three or four days late is not a problem.
Will Pedri be Pedri again?
I change the verb, Pedri has to meet Pedri. But he can appear at any time because he is very talented and a great player.
But aren’t you worried about your current state of form?
I know him very well, I have been one of his supporters since he was very young. I know perfectly well what Pedri can give me at any moment, and he knows what I’m going to ask of him. You will always have my recognition, and I am sure that with me it will always be at a good level.
It has not been clear whether he is going to be summoned or not…
When making a list, my coaching staff and I considered many scenarios. Although in the end the decision is mine, we apply the maximum consensus, and there are players who may not be able to play three or four games in a row at a very high pace, but they are capable of playing 20 exceptional minutes in each of them. And that is already a reason to be selected.
Do you remember any case like that of Lamine Yamal, who at the age of 16 was already established in his team and in the national team?
Messi comes to mind, but I think it’s not good to make comparisons. Those of us of a certain age have seen very good footballers, even at an early age.
How do you manage it?
It would be a mistake to put pressure on him. He will need support because he will go through difficult times, because those who compliment him now will be the first to criticize him, and as professionals we know that he will have a hard time, he is in the process of training. You have to be cautious, be cautious, but at the same time be demanding because there are not many with that potential. You have to demand them according to his point of maturity.
Could the maximum demands that exist in a Euro Cup affect you?
There are special footballers like him who at 16 have something different and you know that they are prepared for things that others are not until they are 23 or 24 years old. If he ends up playing in the Euro Cup it will be because he is prepared and because he has that special talent of a chosen one.
Morata, captain and forward of Spain, has scored a goal since January…
He has never failed us and many times, he has even performed better with the national team than with his club. Forwards are players of streaks and you never know when one begins and when it ends. He could be scoring a lot of goals and reach the Euro Cup and stop. And backwards.
Do you keep your trust in him intact?
My confidence in Álvaro (Morata) is total and absolute. I know he won’t let us down.
But aren’t you worried about the lack of goals in the national team?
The thing is that with us the forwards have always worked. Joselu I think he has scored 8 goals in 12 games. And Morata had a streak in which he did not stop scoring goals with Spain when he could not achieve it with Atlético. I really am very calm because I believe that we are a team that has the ability to score goals and, furthermore, the responsibility is widely distributed. I also remember now Ferran Torres, who did not play for Barça and saw the goal with us.
Is there room on the list for players who have never been called up with you, like Barcelona player Fermín?
In football there are doors that open and close naturally. We follow all the players, and most have been on a pre-list. We will value everything and match those who best suit our needs, regardless of whether they have been with us or not, that will not be inconvenient.
He has chosen a very isolated place for the concentration in Germany…
It is an ideal place. The facilities are exceptional to work in and we have the fields a four-minute walk away if we want to take a walk. We will have tranquility and comfort, and the trips in the end will be like the ones we do from Las Rozas, 40 minutes to the airport and flight to a city.
The concentrations can end up being very long…
It can be 30 or 40 days in the end, and we want the players to be comfortable and at ease, so that they can focus on playing football and competing well. It is a time of maximum individual and collective demand.
Has everything that has happened in the RFEF in recent months affected you a lot?
It’s not nice. Honestly, I would be lying if I said otherwise. We are not oblivious to all this noise that has formed around the Federation, which is not free, it is deserved. It is something that makes you uncomfortable, but we have to come out of this situation stronger.
But the Federation continues to generate disturbing news…
I ask and hope that everything is resolved as soon as possible to help Spanish football return to normal. We focus on football, which is the only thing we can control.
A supervisory commission has been created with Vicente del Bosque at the head.
For me, Vicente is a reference that I admire. I have a very good relationship with him and everything he does will seem exceptional to me. He is a person who, with his mere presence, brings wisdom, experience, success and, furthermore, humanity. So I think he is a perfect figure.
Have you already spoken to him? Do you know what she’s going to do exactly?
We haven’t spoken yet, but, in any case, he will always be well received in our group, he is a very dear person.
After a year and a half in office, what assessment do you make when you look in the rearview mirror?
I am very satisfied with how this time has passed. It has been a vital experience for me and I have continued to learn things. I have learned about aspects of football that I did not know and I also believe that I am a better person for the path I am seeking in my life.
It hasn’t been an easy few months…
I haven’t had a calm press conference, to be honest. I would have liked all of them to have had that normal football tension, but they have been full of aspects that were far from sports and which we had to deal with. Maybe I shouldn’t have done it, but I have a clear conscience and I like to reason about what is happening around me.
Does being a team selector or coach change a lot?
I think I didn’t know what a coach did twelve years ago, when I arrived at the Federation. And they are very different activities. As a coach you also have a day to day life, even if it is different, because in the end you arrive at nine in the morning and leave at nine at night. In addition to player scouting, you have to clarify concentrations, watch your rivals, prepare talks… It’s something very intense that I do happily.
How do you fill your free hours?
I really like playing sports, it is something that gives me peace and tranquility, and allows me to disconnect and think about my things or nothing. And, of course, spending time with the family, and I have hobbies like everyone else, reading, walking…
His passion for the gym is obvious…
it’s a lifestyle. I have played sports since I was very young. Unfortunately, I suffered serious injuries to my knees and I would love to be able to go running, but I can’t, and I discovered the gym. But if I could do any sport, I would do it, I am a sportsman by nature.
How do you remember your childhood in Haro?
Like that of a boy who played soccer on the town team and who was lucky, in a time that was not like now, when all the clubs know who stands out on any team, that Athletic noticed him when he was only He signed Basques. If not the first, I was one of the first non-Basques to play for Athletic. When I went out to a professional club at the age of 15, I began to get the idea that I could make a living from football.
Did you always know that you were going to be a footballer?
The truth is that everything happened very quickly. I would think about studying, but I don’t really know if I wanted to be a lawyer or a plumber, I don’t remember. I was studying BUP and I got the opportunity from Athletic, and at the age of 18 I made my debut in the first team. Everything happened so quickly that I didn’t have time to think about other things. I do remember that my concern, back then and until now, has been not to disappoint those who trust me and who have given me a chance.
