Luis de la Fuente is not one for sentiment. The Spain manager has decided to bench Pedri for Tuesday’s World Cup quarterfinal against Belgium, even though the Barcelona midfielder started every match of the tournament so far. Fabian Ruiz gets the nod instead.
The decision is less about Pedri struggling and more about what Spain needs against a Belgium side that sits deep and waits for counters. Pedri is a defensive midfielder by trade at Barcelona, but with Rodri holding that spot for the national team, Pedri has been pushed into a more advanced role he doesn’t look fully comfortable in. He hasn’t created much in this World Cup from that unfamiliar spot, and De la Fuente clearly wants more direct attacking threat from midfield.
Ruiz, who plays further forward for PSG, brings that. He’s more natural making runs into the box and threading passes through tight lines. The rest of the starting XI looks familiar. Unai Simón starts in goal — he’s still riding that record shutout streak, hasn’t conceded a single goal all tournament. The back four is the usual group: Cucurella, Laporte, Cubarsi, and Porro. Up top, Yamal, Baena, and Oryazabal keep their spots from the Round of 16 win over Portugal.
The other surprise is Mikel Merino not starting. He scored the game-winner against Portugal and some pundits figured that would earn him a starting role. Instead, De la Fuente is keeping him on the bench as a late-game option. According to team sources, the manager values Merino’s ability to change a game in the final 20 minutes when legs get heavy.
Spain’s defense has been flawless so far — zero goals against in four matches. Pedri deserves some credit for that, even if he’s been quiet going forward. But De la Fuente is chasing a different problem now. Belgium’s attack is dangerous, but their real strength is transitional speed. Spain plans to hold the ball and make Belgium chase. Ruiz is better suited to unlocking that kind of game than Pedri, at least in the manager’s view.
Kickoff is set for 3 p.m. local time. If Ruiz doesn’t produce early, the Pedri question will follow De la Fuente all the way to the postgame press conference. And if Spain loses, it’ll follow him a lot longer than that.
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