🇪🇸 Spain

De la Fuente deploys a 4-2-3-1 or 4-3-3 depending on the opponent, with Rodri sitting deep as the pivot and Pedri or Fabián Ruiz carrying the ball forward. Marc Cucurella and Álex Grimaldo push high as inverted or overlapping full-backs, creating overloads wide. Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams stretch defences on the flanks while Dani Olmo operates as the advanced central link.

Watch Lamine Yamal for the sheer audacity of a teenager who already tormented defenders at Euro 2024 with his dribbling and diagonal cutting from the right. Pedri is the metronome who makes Spain's positional game tick — always available, always turning forward. Rodri anchors everything from deep, reading the game a beat faster than anyone around him and dictating tempo with his passing range.

Spain's midfield density — Rodri, Pedri, Zubimendi and Fabián Ruiz all competing for starts — gives De la Fuente elite options in the engine room. The Yamal–Williams wide pairing is the most explosive in international football, capable of unlocking any defence with direct dribbling and combination play.

Spain lack a natural penalty-box striker in this squad; Borja Iglesias and Ferran Torres are the most conventional options but neither guarantees goals at the highest level. If Rodri picks up an injury — as happened at club level in 2024-25 — Spain's entire defensive structure loses its most important organising presence.