Yamal fitness in De la Fuente's hands as Spain eye Cape Verde opener

De la Fuente holds the key on Yamal

Lamine Yamal's World Cup opener hangs on one man: Luis de la Fuente. Assistant coach Aitor Karanka confirmed the manager will have the "final say" on when Spain's star teenager returns, in consultation with the medical staff (1). Yamal has been recovering from injury ahead of Monday's Group H opener against Cape Verde. The Barcelona winger sat out the final warm-up match and his availability could define Spain's start to the tournament.

Newcastle move for Spain squad member Munoz

Victor Munoz has not kicked a ball at the World Cup yet, but he is already turning heads. Newcastle United have submitted a bid for the Osasuna midfielder, with De la Fuente offering a glowing endorsement: "I think he's a lad with tremendous footballing potential, and he's shown with the national team that he's ready to compete at that level too" (2). The Spain boss even backed him as a future Real Madrid-level player.

Spain tipped to cruise past Cape Verde

Spain 3–0 Cape Verde is the predicted scoreline for Monday's Group H opener (3). The forecast assumes both Yamal and Nico Williams will be fit enough to feature, with De la Fuente's call on Yamal now the decisive factor. A comfortable win would settle nerves after an interrupted preparation.

Fan-reaktioner

Confidence is sky-high among Spain supporters heading into the tournament. A comprehensive aggregation of 14 media power rankings places Spain as the consensus No. 1 team at the World Cup, with an average ranking of 1.43, well ahead of France (1.93) and Argentina (2+). See the full breakdown here.