'In Spain everyone has their club, but I ask them to understand me too'

A magnificent year in which Spain finished as number one in the world but with the focus already set on World Cup 2026, where La Roja aspires to its second star, Luis de la Fuente is an inexhaustible source of optimism without losing his restraint. And he bases it on the "strength" of knowing his players in depth, on their talent and competitive nature and on the unity of a family that, he says, keeps its values intact.

Did you see it possible to get this far, with an undefeated record of 31 games?

This is a process, a long-distance race. You have to go back three years, when we took over the national team, to see where we were and where we are today. Things have been done well and we continue to grow, but there is always a but: we must continue to improve because we have room to do so and we must push ourselves to be more competitive every day.

How do you manage to maintain the ambition of the group after winning a European Championship?

There are always new challenges. I know these footballers so well that I know what they are like, demanding more of themselves because sportingly they are insatiable. And that is one of our strengths. Some of them are very young and others, with whom I started working in the youth teams, are 28 or 29 years old and are in their prime, still with many years of great performance.

Are you afraid that some players' egos or environments might spoil this idyll?

-No. This group has no egos. And I say that with such certainty because of the knowledge I have of them. They have the strength to understand that the common good must come before the private good. And because they are good people, they are generous, supportive, with a capacity for suffering. In this respect, I am very calm because I know what they are like and they have shown it to me.

Are you worried about the latest brawls in the last Clásico, with captain Dani Carvajal and young star Lamine Yamal almost fighting?

No, look, they can't wait to see each other for a hug. At the European Championship we coined a key term and that was the word family. They have that very much ingrained in them and they know that this concept is much more powerful than the one that can arise in a logical dispute on the pitch. When I was a footballer, I also almost came to blows on the pitch with someone who is now one of my best friends.

And doesn't the mess with Flick and Barça over Lamine's injury cloud the picture?

No, it is simply to understand that each of us has to take care of our responsibilities, respect one other and know that we depend on each other. I don't know of any player, none, that's 100%, who doesn't want to come to the national team. And I don't know any club that doesn't want their players to come. I want them to compete better every day in their clubs so that the teams get better results. Sometimes things are taken out of context, but now there is a cordial desire in both directions.

Aren't you fed up with always being asked about the big two, Real Madrid and Barça?

There is an expression that says that in Spain we are all about clubs. I also have my little heart, as you have yours. We've all had a team that we've liked since we were kids and we have to keep that when we're older. But you also have to have the spirit of the national team because that's what represents us all. And for me there is no greater reason for pride and happiness than to be national team coach. I understand everyone, but I want them to understand me too. When we play against some national teams, you often see the attitude of the people and sometimes you say, "Oh, it could be like that in Spain."

So you agree with the late Luis Aragonés that there should be a big national sit-in or something to get everyone rowing more in the same direction?

Yes, because this has happened to Luis, to Vicente del Bosque, to Julen Lopetegui, to Luis Enrique, to everyone ..... But it's also true that people got much more hooked on Spain after that victorious Euro, World Cup and European Championship cycle between 2008 and 2012. Then maybe people got more attached to their clubs, but now they are getting hooked again since we won the European Championship. We are going to try to prolong it much longer, for now until the next World Cup

Does anyone seem to be putting a spanner in your works?

No, no, I feel very supported. Another thing is that certain media, and this is what reaches the fans, sell issues that don't happen here. We feel very supported, very recognised throughout Spain. Wherever I travel around the country, and I travel a lot, I feel only and exclusively recognition and admiration. If any information is far from that reality, it is not my problem. My problem is really to make sure that people continue to be hooked on the national team.

Did you feel undervalued or underappreciated coming from grassroots football?

Well, look. If someone sought to offend me or hurt me with those comments, they achieved the opposite and showed that they didn't know me. I'm a guy who rises to any difficulty. I'm a sportsman used to competing; and what's more, I'm from La Rioja and we are insistent.

How many great coaches will there be in Spanish football who will retire without any recognition?

Well, yes, I am proud of where I come from because I come from that culture, from assuming that nothing in life is achieved without effort and that there is no worse favour you can do someone than to gift them everything. That's how I was brought up, to work and work and work, and when faced with difficulties, not to make excuses but to provide solutions. It is true that now everything I do has more repercussions and recognition and I love it because it really highlights the value of the culture of hard work.

What are the dangers of the World Cup, perhaps the pressure of being the favourites?

I don't understand why people sometimes say that we should shy away from pressure, that we shouldn't be seen as favourites. There's nothing wrong with other coaches considering us like that, but it doesn't guarantee anything either. We have to do things very well, but without any added pressure, just be aware that people outside the country think we are capable of winning the World Cup. I think we are candidates to win the World Cup, but no more than Germany, France, Brazil, Argentina, Morocco or Portugal.