Spain boss Luis de la Fuente has had some words of advice for Lamine Yamal ahead of Spain’s last 32 tie against Portugal at World Cup 2026.
The game will see Yamal come up against Nuno Mendes once again. Yamal has said recently that Mendes is the toughest opponent he has faced, and De la Fuente has analyzed the match-up between the two players.
“He has faced him with his club and his country. In that process of development that Lamine is still in, he knows that it is the big games against great opponents
that lay down a marker: they’re the ones that shape and define you, show you a path,” he told The Guardian.
“Lamine is a competitor and he will have the desire to remove the thorn from his side from that [Nations League] game. But a long time has passed since then and Lamine has grown a lot. Lamine is not the player he was a year ago; he’s another player, more mature, more assured, he reads the games better, logically.
“With every stage of his development, every experience, he will be more complete. So what would I say to him? ‘Be yourself, enjoy football, with the responsibility that comes with it, the responsibility that you take on, but be yourself.’”
Spain head into the match after an impressive win over Austria in the Round of 32, while Portugal booked their place with a 2-1 win over Croatia.
