Times have changed, and it feels like a life time ago when Spain lifted their first World Cup in South Africa 2010. This squad has evolved, and is still finding its essence after having witnessed a golden generation just a few years ago. Qatar 2022 will be Spain’s 16th appearance in a World Cup, and has qualified consecutively since 1978. There is a lot to like about the new version of “La Furia Roja”, but it has not been easy to turn the page of former glory for the European powerhouse.
Tough Challenge In The Group
Spain will make its debut on Wednesday, November 23rd against Costa Rica, which is probably the most accessible opponent of the group. A strong performance will ease the pressure, and help Spain prepare for match-day 2 against an elite opponent: Germany, which will be the toughest test in the group stages for ‘La Furia’. In match-day 3, Spain will have another interesting challenge when they face Japan, which is a dangerous rival with plenty of World Cup experience. There’s no reason to believe that Spain can’t progress in the competition, specially since they got a huge morale boost last month when they made it to the ‘Final Four’ in the UEFA Nations League with a huge road win in Portugal.
Manager Under Pressure
Former FC Barcelona boss, Luis Enrique, has been at the helm of Spain’s National Team since 2018, but has yet to deliver any mayor sucess, which has earned him a lot of dislikeness from fans and media. His best result up to date has been ‘Runner Up’ at the 20-21 UEFA Nations League.
Its nothing new that Spanish managers are under plenty of pressure, since the standards for an Elite team such as ‘La Furia Roja’ sets the bar very high, even since before the World Championship in 2010. Pressure for Luis Enrique is mainly because of his squad call-ups; since there’s always rivalry and divided opinions amongst Spanish media which favours players from their own favourite teams. This translates to pressure being pointed directly at Lus Enrique, who has been in the hot seat more than once during his tenure when the team fails to perform. Nevertheless, Enrique earned a lot of good faith recently among his haters after a good result in the UEFA Nations League.
Who Is Going To Make The Difference?
‘La Furia Roja’ has international stars amongst its entire squad (veterans and youngsters), so the question is: Who is going to step up and make a difference when the team struggles?
Recently, Atletico Madrid striker, Alvaro Morata, has taken a featured role for Spain and made the difference in a couple of key matches, but he has been very irregular during his entire career, and has failed to convert “easy goals” when his team needed it the most. We’ll see if Morata has matured, since he is a key contributor for the squad.
FC Barcelona midfielders continue to play a crucial role up to this day in the National Team, a blend of veteran experience with Busquets, and wonder kids Pedri and Gavi, give this squad a dynamic core that will be something to keep an eye on, since it could also play a crucial role in Spain’s fate.
Top Form Needed To Succeed
This new generation of Spanish talent is special, but for uncertain reasons it seems we haven’t seen their top form while playing together. Its going to be very difficulty for Luis Enrique to make this team perform in such a short window, but he certainly has the pieces amongst his squad to do it. Spain needs to secure the top spot in their group in order to avoid an early exit with a difficult knockout game in the last 16. The quarter finals are a realistic target for the Spaniards, and if they find their best football they could progress even further.
