The tingling in the stomach arrives, the sweaty hands, the nerves on the surface. The premiere of the World Cup arrives. spain finally appears in the Doha amusement park with the beautiful challenge of sewing a second star on the shirt. He does it in the stadium Al Thumama and with the usual doubts, without really knowing if he starts on pole or has several favorites ahead. On whether his luck will depend on a badly taken penalty or perhaps this time his sobón game will be worth to carry out the games with more ease. Defeats like the one in Argentina yesterday show, in any case, that favoritism is overrated.
Only a week and a half of concentration has served to corroborate what was already known, that in this Spain everything revolves around Luis Enrique. And in Qatar, more. And it is good that it is so, the coach affirms emphatically, proud of his role as leader, almost as a spiritual guide. “If not, who are the players going to trust?” He explained yesterday. And there is no doubt about the success of him. The Asturian arrives at the meeting surrounded by a faithful army, a group of players who fully believe in his dictates. They live protected by him because, for better or worse, he assumes all the leading role. He removes his players from the spotlight. He insists on them to enjoy, to live to the fullest this childhood dream that, curiously, comes to many when they are still children.
What Spain will appear?
In the Luis Enrique era, especially in the second stage, Spain has always moved inconsistency. A win over Germany led to a resounding defeat in the Ukraine. And on the contrary, two worrying draws against Sweden and Poland served as a preview to see a courageous and ambitious Spain that, even with extensions and penalties involved, reached the semifinals of the Eurocup. That is the clearest image that ordinary fans still keep in their memory, and it is what causes this Spain to excite more people than usual.
Costa Rica awaits for the premiere, an unprecedented rival in the history of the national team and the last team to qualify after the intercontinental play-off against New Zealand. At least from the outside, the Ticos are convinced that they are going to give Spain a scare. There will be no surprises with them. They will lock themselves in and look for their opportunities in that almost chronic defensive weakness that the Spanish team shows.
The last training session before the game left several interesting images. The first is that for the first time since arriving in Doha the 26 players were seen together on the pitch. Luis Enrique has everyone available, including Guillamón, who touched the ball for the first time. carvajal y Morata, the two men who were most affected by the air conditioning, are also in full swing, according to the coach. The striker’s presence in the eleven was one of the big doubts for this start, both because of the blow he suffered in the last league game with Atlético and because of his indisposition in recent days. The last test yesterday, however, seems to play in his favor. “The doubts that I have for the eleven do not come from the physical or the tactical,” he replied yesterday Luis Enrique at the press conference he gave at the International Press Center. «They arrive because of the level of training. The fact that the player knows that training earns the position makes the level of training very high. I choose the players because of the feeling I have.” Marco Asensio, who played as a false nine against Jordan, could still have a place in the eleven even if Morata plays.
The other murmur that has flown over the concentration of Spain during the week is that Luis Enrique could once again have Rodri as central, accompanying Laporte. The option seems to win integers: «We have enough players who can act in two or three positions. In this case, both Rodri and Guillamón can play central or pivot. I like having those possibilities and I don’t rule out being able to use them in different positions.”
Spain, which will debut at the World Cup with an all-red kit because of FIFA’s obsession with matching colors, hasn’t won its first World Cup game since 2006. They often say that it’s the most important game, although that doesn’t stop it. Being one of the usual clichés in the world of football that Luis Enrique usually refers to. Let them tell the champions in South Africa after their thump against Switzerland at the Durban premiere. Busquets knows it well, captain today and rookie then. «Yes, I have thought that I may be the only Spanish player with two World Cups in his record. It is always an illusion to be able to achieve it, but when the ball rolls I will not think about it.
