Spain’s Coach Defends Lamine Yamal After World Cup Win. His Reasoning Is Telling.

Spain is moving on at the World Cup after a tense, 1-0 win over Portugal on Monday night. Mikel Merino’s goal in the second half was the difference. But the conversation afterward wasn’t really about the goal or the result.

It was about Lamine Yamal.

The 18-year-old Barcelona winger started on the right wing, matched up against one of the best left backs in the game, Nuno Mendes. And for long stretches, it wasn’t pretty. Yamal struggled to get involved. He lost possession a few times. Fans online were quick to pile on, calling him invisible or saying he wasn’t ready for a game of this magnitude.

But Spain manager Luis de la Fuente saw it differently.

De la Fuente’s defense of Yamal

When reporters asked about Yamal’s performance after the match, De la Fuente didn’t hesitate. He went straight to bat for his young star.

“Lamine Yamal? He played one of the biggest matches of his career,” De la Fuente said. “I am so happy with him. Nuno Mendes’ injury was probably caused by the demands Lamine placed on him throughout the game.”

That part about Mendes’ injury is worth noting. Portugal’s left back went down late in the match and had to be subbed off. Whether it was directly from fatigue or something else, De la Fuente made the point that Yamal kept pushing, kept running at him, kept forcing a world-class defender to work for 90 minutes.

That’s the kind of analysis you don’t always get from the stat sheet. Yamal didn’t score or assist. He didn’t have a dribble highlight that goes viral. But his manager argued the pressure he applied changed how Portugal defended.

What this means going forward

Spain is now in the quarterfinals. They’re the reigning European champions and they’re playing with a mix of veterans and kids like Yamal. The criticism of a teenager in a knockout World Cup game is predictable. It’s also maybe a little short-sighted.

De la Fuente has shown he’s not going to let the noise get to him. He’s sticking with Yamal. And if Spain goes deeper in this tournament, that trust might be the reason why.