‘Best is yet to come’ from Spain – Luis de la Fuente
The World Cup winners take on England at Wembley on Saturday.
Spain boss Luis de la Fuente warned “the best is yet to come” before his world champions face England at Wembley on Saturday in their Nations League opener.
De la Fuente led Spain to World Cup glory in the summer as they lifted the trophy for the second time by beating Argentina 1-0 in the final.
That triumph extended Spain’s unbeaten run to 38 matches – a new record – stretching back to 2024 when they lost a friendly to Colombia, while their 2025 Nations League final defeat to Portugal was on penalties and so counts as a draw.
De la Fuente told a press conference: “We just cannot get enough of success. A new story is about to start. New objectives. My players are motivated. We still have hunger to compete, and as I said, the best is yet to come.
“We will debut a new jersey with two stars in Wembley. Is there any better place possible than that? No, this is indeed the best place and there is no extra motivation needed.”
De la Fuente dismissed any notion of complacency among his players and backroom staff due in large to the quality of their opposition.
“Tomorrow we are facing an important rival, a different, difficult opponent,” he said. “So there is no place for complacency.
“There is margin of growth. There are new objectives we want to meet, and we’re going to go on to the pitch tomorrow seeking the highest level possible.
“And this is good news that there is margin of growth. We do want to grow, and the ceiling hasn’t been reached yet.”
Thomas Tuchel’s England lost out to Argentina in the semi-finals at the World Cup, but De la Fuente made clear his respect for Saturday’s opponents.
He added: “England is a great team, a superpower when it comes to football. They are third in the FIFA ranking, two times finalists recently in the Euros and semi-finalists in the World Cup, we are similar in terms of being a big team.
“We try to rise up to the expectations, especially when we face difficult opponents and difficult games, like it’s the case tomorrow. Of course, losing is in the game. You can lose even when you’re in the best shape.
“What is a good thing for us now is that we have trust and we are confident in ourselves.”