Euro 2024 Spain to Regain?
Just over a decade ago Spain were dominating men’s international football, but have struggled to recapture that at recent tournaments. Here, Feargal Brennan examines how in their latest transitional phase, La Roja are plotting a path to Euro 2024.
Spain’s golden era of international dominance from 2008 to 2012 gave the firm impression of La Roja’s stranglehold being unbreakable for as long as they wanted it to be. They seemed to be blessed with an endless pool of talent, with a style of play that would mesmerise opposing teams into submission. When Italy were thoroughly dismantled 4-0 by a masterclass of a performance in the final of Euro 2012, it certainly didn’t seem like the end of an era.
Even as their European Championship and World Cup winning sides were disassembled and legends such as Xavi, Carles Puyol and David Villa bowed out, the initial sense remained that while the edge had taken off their omnipotence, the stars would continue to align for those who were left.
However, the despite the optimism over quick fixes and new talents being enough to keep Spain at the top international table, their decade-long decline was laid bare by a 2022 World Cup exit at the hands of unfancied Morocco following a penalty shootout in the last 16, which demonstrated that little, if any, progress had been made from a strikingly similar exit to hosts Russia in 2018.
The shock of a group stage departure at the 2014 World Cup was the beginning of the rapid drop off. It came out of the blue and demonstrated how far they had fallen from being world champions just four years earlier, to being torn apart by a rampant Netherlands, and outfoxed by a streetwise Chile.
Vicente del Bosque was justifiably retained, despite the screeching exit, but the enigmatic former Real Madrid boss opted to call it a day after their last 16 defeat to vengeful rivals Italy at Euro 2016. Del Bosque’s exit, coupled with the international retirement of more key names, signalled a change in Spanish football, with the RFEF admitting a greater need for pragmatism over their situation was needed.
The talent had not dried up, but the Barcelona/Spain hybrid model needed to be re-adapted to international football, with Julen Lopetegui handed the difficult role as del Bosque’s successor.
Despite appearing to have achieved the brief of bringing Spain up to speed for an international game, which they no longer dominated, his pre-2018 World Cup deal with Real Madrid caused chaos in Russia. The RFEF sacked him on the eve of the tournament, after learning of his intention to join Los Blancos after the tournament, and Spain’s hopes of a revival were ended in one fell swoop as Fernando Hierro was parachuted in as an emergency leader for what turned out to be a turbulent World Cup campaign.
Luis Enrique’s eventual arrival changed the narrative, as a disciplinarian meshed with an innovating tactician, and Spain marched to the semi-finals of Euro 2020. Enrique’s drive to the last four, again losing out to old foes, and tournament winners, Italy, appeared to trigger a resolution to the malaise being experienced in the post-del Bosque era. The former Barcelona boss instilled his own brand of ruthless edginess into a developing squad, with his infamous omissions of Sergio Ramos, and faith in youth, indicating that Spain’s national team was clicking back into gear.
However, Enrique’s commitment to his methods was arguably a key factor in their undoing at the 2022 World Cup, with the team repeatedly guilty of playing endless possession football without a clear end product. His restlessness over wanting a club role plain to see by his quickfire post-tournament exit, before the squad had time to unpack their suitcases back in Madrid.
The latest boom and bust cycle saw the RFEF move at record speed to instantly replace Enrique with his former U-21 head coach Luis de la Fuente.
De la Fuente’s strong suit is his familiarity with the incoming generation of Spanish talent, having led U-19 and U-21 teams to European titles, via the talents of Marco Asensio, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz and Dani Olmo.
The 62-year-old’s top-flight senior resume includes a brief spell at Alaves, over a decade ago, and that is starkly balanced against a squad managed by Pep Guardiola, Xavi and Carlo Ancelotti at club level.
His youthful core comprising of Camp Nou starlets Pedri and Gavi is more wedded to a Barcelona playing philosophy, than an undefined Spanish one, and the Riojan coach has made a mixed start to Euro 2024 qualifying.
A 3-0 win over a Norway side without Erling Haaland needed an incredible late match-winning debut cameo from the previously uncapped Joselu, before a 2-0 loss in Scotland, punctuated by petty criticisms over timewasting and the Hampden Park grass being too long.
Spain are still strongly tipped to avoid a Euro 2024 qualifying disaster, and secure a place in Germany next summer, but the task facing de la Fuente is a difficult one. Barcelona have kept up to their side of the bargain, by producing La Masia graduates, or honing emerging non-Catalan talent, but there is a notable gap between the burgeoning stars and the experienced names favoured by Enrique.
De la Fuente’s first squad included eight players aged 23 or under, however, from the players in the 27–31-year-old ‘sweet spot’, only Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Morata have over 30 international caps.
Bridging that gap between the clearly exciting long-term future, led by Pedri, Gavi, Alejandro Balde and others, against an older guard, that have flattered to deceive for Spain, hints at de la Fuente’s side continuing the pattern of moderate tournament performances.
Aymeric Laporte’s place as de la Fuente’s defensive leader is factored against his lack of playing time at Manchester City, with Morata’s almost one goal in two Spain games ratio masking his genuine impact for the national side in years gone by.
That lack of world class talent in most positions on the pitch is regularly the differential factor at the business end of tournaments, either World Cups or European Championships, and Spain are lacking at both ends of the pitch, as an unavoidable conundrum for de la Fuente.
Joselu’s shock burst onto the scene is a demonstration of this, as de la Fuente looks to find a possible short-term solution to a long-standing issue of goalscoring, and the Espanyol star could be joined by other La Liga wildcards in the months ahead.
Borja Iglesias, Gerard Moreno and Iago Aspas are all on the radar for 2023, with some justification, but the abundance of attacking talent available to England and France, for example, illustrates the tricky picture for the new man in charge.
The likes of Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Kylian Mbappe, Antoine Griezmann and Olivier Giroud have shown their worth in crunch moments whilst Spain’s only major tournament scorer in the current squad is the unreliable Morata.
The Atletico Madrid forward has been unfairly wheeled out as a pariah in previous competitions, but he is unfortunately symbolic of where Spain are, in comparison to their rivals. Talented and experienced, but too fleeting in key moments, and ultimately not at the level needed to win a trophy, with no desire in Spain to opt for a holistically basic approach to kickstart a return to the top.
The sense of Spain’s ‘time’ still being a little further down the road could ease some of the burden being placed onto de la Fuente in 2023, but the question will fall on his shoulders over a suitability to lead the team, as Pedri et al reach their peak years for club and country.
De la Fuente will have his time in the spotlight, as Spain cruise along towards Euro 2024 qualification, but what defines his tenure is unlikely to be a La Roja return to the main stage.
