The Evolution of Spain’s Security Corridor: A Solid Block for the Eurocup

Luis Aragones He wasn’t very systems-oriented. “Zarandajas”, he said many times when the debate revolved around whether a 4-4-2 or a 4-3-3 was better. His way of understanding football was much more dynamic and open. For the coach who made Spain champion of Europe in Vienna In 2008, after crossing a long desert, he believed in other concepts in a team that go beyond the drawing with which he stands on the field.

One of the most important was the security corridor. When he used that concept for the first time is something that is lost in time in his long history as a coach, but it was one of the first messages from him when in August 2004 he took charge of the national team.

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Almost two decades later, Luis de la Fuente has found in that definition of backbone the way to build a team that has risen from the blow of Hampden Park and is sending signs of strength with eight months left until the start of the season. Eurocup.

Goalkeeper-head of defense-pivot-center forward. That is the security corridor and in today’s Spain it is more than clear: Unai Simón-Laporte-Rodri-Morata. That’s Luis de la Fuente’s.

The goalkeeper stopped being a question mark since Unai He was chosen in the semifinal of the Nations League . The voices that assured a safe relief in favor of Kepa They were buried as soon as the coach could count on the goal of the Athletic. Unai He was a key figure in achieving the Nations League.

Laporte He is the head of the defense and one of the most powerful voices in the national team’s locker room. His authority is in the field and in the booth. In this concentration he has been seen very close to Gavias if it were his padre.

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Laporte, captain without armband

Spain’s defensive model goes through the now central Al-Nassr. The doubts generated by his departure to Saudi football are cleared up with his work against Haaland in Oslo. He joined the national team in May 2021 and has played 26 games since then, but his work on the team is that of a true captain, although the armband is something that is far away from him. The only game he has not played with De la Fuente was the defeat in Glasgow. Chance? On that black night in Scotland, in the security corridor he only played Rodri.

With the captain’s band he ended up on the arm of Rodri in it Ullevaal Stadium. The midfielder is the pillar of this team, the flagship player. The dreaded goodbye Busquets It has been overcome without any trauma thanks to a player who lived four years in the shadow of the great 5 of the national team and who has taken command with the authority that was presumed.

Rodri He is the player with the most minutes at this stage (732 minutes out of 750) and the only one who has started game after game. His hierarchy in the parties is absolute.

This security zone built by Spain has its most advanced piece in Morata. The captain of the national team is the undisputed forward of From the source. He has been the starting striker in all the games except the one in Scotland and his scoring production leads, along with Joselu, the list of scorers.

Another model

That security corridor is surrounded by another group of players who can be classified as indisputable. Because this Spain of De la Fuente is far from that of Luis Enrique in many ways. The Asturian was a coach with constant rotation, with numerous changes from game to game. The Riojan left that plan on hold after the March defeat in Glasgow.

Gavi He belongs to the hard core as much as the four in the security corridor. In fact it adds four minutes more than Morata from the world. He was not a starter either. Glasgow, where he barely played 10 minutes. Gavi is indisputable in the eleven and the idea.

As it already is Robin Le Normand. The Real center back is Laporte’s partner. And the two center backs are the basis of many things. The mechanism of this couple is fundamental and their balance since Le Normand’s debut is two goals conceded (Italy and Georgia), no defeats and one title.

But the permanent group is broader. The best version of Carvajal never seen in the national team is the right back without debate. On the other hand, if there are no injuries, it will be Gayà. In the extreme opulence of this selection, Dani Olmo and Asensioabsent from this list due to injury, have stripes of command.

That panorama draws an eleven in which there is one piece that rotates: Mikel Merino-Fabián Ruiz.

And Pedri?

That is the big question that arises. The Canarian has not played with the national team since the defeat on penalties against Morocco in Doha. Injuries have caused him to miss the list ever since.

When he returns, De la Fuente will have before him the dilemma of how to fit an element of that importance in a midfield that is giving him high performance. It is an important decision. But one of those that for coaches is a positive headache because they have a choice and not because they have to think about how to cover up absences.

This is the Spain that is going to the Euro, an increasingly solid block, more established and one in which the gaps for the list of 23 are beginning to be few.

2023-10-16 18:20:16
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