"Belgium toughest challenge so far": De la Fuente ahead of Spain's FIFA World Cup quarter-final

Los Angeles [US], July 10 (ANI): Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente has described Belgium as his side’s toughest test of the FIFA World Cup 2026 so far, insisting his players are fully focused for the blockbuster quarter-final despite La Roja being considered the favourites to qualify for the semi-final clash against France.

Spain have enjoyed an impressive run to the last eight, winning all five of their matches without conceding a goal. Their disciplined defence, possession-based football and attacking quality have established them among the favourites to lift the trophy.

“Tomorrow’s game will be the hardest that we’ve faced to this point,” de la Fuente told reporters, as quoted by Reuters.

“Belgium is a very powerful team. These are players who are used to winning. It’s going to be a challenging match,” he added.

The winners of the quarter-final in Los Angeles will face France in the semi-finals after Les Bleus defeated Morocco 2-0 earlier on Thursday. However, De la Fuente refused to look beyond Belgium.

“Trust me we are only thinking about Belgium tomorrow,” he said.

Spain’s attack has been spearheaded by Mikel Oyarzabal, who has scored four goals at the tournament, while 18-year-old Barcelona sensation Lamine Yamal has continued to impress despite finding the net only once. De la Fuente backed the teenager to deliver on the biggest stage.

“He’s going to perform on the attacking front,” the Spain coach said, praising Yamal’s growing maturity and defensive contribution during Spain’s 1-0 Round of 16 victory over Portugal.

Emphasising that Spain’s success has been built on teamwork rather than individual brilliance, De la Fuente invoked a quote attributed to Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.

“What is bad for the hive is also bad for the bee,” he said.

Former India international Robin Singh believes the battle in midfield could ultimately decide the contest between the European heavyweights.

According to a Zee5 release, Robin said Spain’s possession-oriented approach will come up against Belgium’s dangerous counter-attacking game led by Kevin De Bruyne, Jeremy Doku and Leandro Trossard.

“Whoever controls the midfield might win the game,” Robin said.

He also urged Spain to be more direct in its attack.

“Spain needs to play a lot more incisively through the middle. They enjoyed the ball possession but could not break the low block down. The wingers also have to cut in to support Oyarzabal, with the width being provided by the overlapping full-backs. Rather than moving the ball side to side, Spain need to play through the middle, with Pedri occupying those spaces between the lines. Yamal also needs to be found in one-on-one situations because that can really cause Belgium problems,” he said.

Robin also warned that Belgium possess the pace to punish Spain if they leave spaces at the back.

“If Belgium attack and commit their full-backs forward, Trossard and Doku can cause issues. If they score early, Spain will become more open. Then, when Lukaku comes in during the second half, he gives Belgium another threat, especially against the young Cubarsi,” he added.

Spain head into the contest seeking a place in their second consecutive World Cup semi-final and remain the only team yet to concede a goal in the tournament, having recorded six successive World Cup clean sheets. Belgium, meanwhile, will be aiming to end Spain’s defensive streak and book a place in the final four. (ANI)

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