Be first above all things. Luis Enrique does not want Spain to lose the place of privilege it occupies, at least in a sought-after, forced, voluntary way. Another matter will be that they empathize against Japan and that a victory for Costa Rica will unseat them in second place. And since the coach doesn’t want to be seen embarrassed with a carambola caused by speculation, has not arrived either, with the virtual ranking guaranteedthe day of relaxation and mansalva rotations.
Respect earned in the tournament and seriousness at work cannot be lost before a match. The relays in the team will be minimal today against Japan (8 p.m.), hardly the ones destined to avoid unnecessary risks, as Busquets saw a yellow card that removed him from the first qualifier, which pairs Spain with the first or second in group F (Croatia, Belgium or Morocco) or reserve Rodri and Gavi, played in recent days. The movement of Luis Enrique’s pieces will be minimal, and by his words he hinted that the time has not come by Ansu Fati. “There will be players who will leave with zero minutes”, he said, without alluding directly to the Blaugrana striker, who has not even been seen warming up on the sidelines.
Spain faces the third game with the same free spirit and positive that the coach wanted to instill. One of the slogans of the rally is a phrase copied from the US Open of tennis. “Pressure is a privilege”. Luis Enrique emphasized the sense of responsibility well understood for the honor of being one of the chosen, not as a burden subject to obligations.
“The only goal I set on the first day of the 16 we have is that it is about enjoy it, because when you enjoy it you can do your job better”, added Luis Enrique, who advocated relaxation and joy. He does feel a certain obligation to the fans because of his conception of football as a spectacle. He compared a match to a play: you have to give quality to make it attractive. The path matters more than the end result, since this path is the one that is enjoyed or suffered before the final denouement. “They will lose 31 selections”, he recalled.
Japan is most imbued with this philosophical spirit. It is more typical of their culture. Japan coach Hajime Oriyasu took notes in his press conference with goalkeeper Shuichi Gonda. He wrote two reflections that he wanted to emphasize, heard from the goal, which were also comments from the technician himself. “You can’t change the past, but you can change the future”, was one of them. Gonda admitted he made a mistake against Costa Rica that prevented Japan from qualifying directly. “Praise is as natural as criticism of football.”
There is only one immediate precedent between the two teams and that is a friendly from 2001. There is a much closer reference for everyone to the Olympic Games duel. Spain beat the hosts, knocking them out of the final, with an Asensio goal five minutes from the end of extra time. There were seven Spanish players who are also in Qatar, the same number from Japan.
“The situation is quite clear: we only have one match left to give everything and achieve our goal of reaching the last eight”, explained Gonda, eager to correct this painful past of Fuller’s goal even if it cannot be , according to the maxim, and bring joy to the fans who will get up at four in the morning to follow the game.
