Spain boss knew England would 'open up'

Luis de la Fuente knew England would eventually qualify for Euro 2024 and says they will be more of a threat to Spain than France or Germany.

Spain have won all six games – the first to do so at the European Championships – and have beaten 2018 World Cup runners-up Croatia, Euro 2020 winners Italy, three-time winners Germany and 2022 World Cup runners-up France along the way. in the final on Sunday at Berlin's Olympiastadion.

In contrast, England limped through a group with Serbia, Denmark and Slovenia, needing 95^th-one minute to equalize to force extra time before going past Slovakia, they had to rely on penalties to beat Switzerland and beat the Netherlands in the final.

“Two big national teams. They are the best two, that's why we both entered the finals” 🌟

Spain manager Luis de la Fuente thinks Spain and England were the two best teams for Euro 2024 ⚔ pic.twitter.com/jiUvJlvGiZ

— Sky Sports News (@SkySportsNews) July 13, 2024

Speaking at a press conference on the eve of the show, de la Fuente said: “They are a very good national team.

“Regardless of the results or the performance so far in this tournament, I knew that England were a very good team, a very good team and that in time they would 'open up'.”

The 63-year-old player is adamant that his players will not take England lightly as they know the quality of their opponents, including Jude Bellingham of Real Madrid.

“I believed that (they will come well) because of the different quality of their players. So there is no complacency or overconfidence on our part.

“Actually, facing England, I think, is a completely different game than any we have played so far.

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“England is a completely different opponent than France or Germany, but they have a high level of players who have won major trophies all over Europe and are playing in big clubs.

“We must continue to grow stronger. Any team with a good score, making few mistakes, will be very close to victory in the end.”

Spain have been hailed as the best team in the competition and have a 13-goal lead to England's seven, but De la Fuente wants more from La Roja if they are to become the first country to win four European Championships.

“I will tell them that they need to play better than what they did to reach the finals,” he said. “We need to be ourselves – but even better.

“I will ask them to have fun. I will tell them that I am proud of them, regardless of the outcome. I will tell them to be an example to our nation.”