De la Fuente: we haven't seen Lamine's best

Spain manager Luis de la Fuente made notable comments at the press conference ahead of their World Cup quarterfinal against Belgium. The manager began his remarks with a philosophical tone, referencing Roman Emperor Marcus Aurelius, a marked contrast to opposing Belgium manager Rudi Garcia's statistics-focused rhetoric.

De la Fuente devoted a significant part of his comments to young star Lamine Yamal. The manager praised Yamal for his two-way performance against Portugal, even crediting the young player's impact for Nuno Mendes, who was marking him, having to leave the pitch injured in the second half. De la Fuente said: "He's very motivated. (Yamal) wants to do so much, and we know the best version of him, the attacking Lamine, is something we haven't seen yet in this World Cup."

The manager assessed Yamal's performance against Portugal as a sign of maturity. De la Fuente said: "He had to work on the defensive side quite a bit because we were facing a powerhouse of a rival. I think this was an exercise in maturity for Lamine. He's going to perform on the attacking front, that's clear. He's got incredible potential, and it's going to come."

Responding to questions following Belgium manager Garcia's comments about being forced into a tactical change due to Amadou Onana's knee injury, De la Fuente emphasized that Spain, despite not scoring consistently at the tournament, are historically a high-scoring team: "Ultimately we have been very focused on the defensive aspect, but we've also historically scored a lot." The manager also recalled that the winning side would face France in the semifinal in the Dallas area next Tuesday.

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