Luis de la Fuente: “I Am Happy, but From Now On the Level of Demand Is Higher”

Shortly before 9:00 p.m. at Guadalajara Stadium, Luis de la Fuente entered the press room to answer questions after Spain’s 1–0 victory over Uruguay, a result that secured top spot in Group H and qualification for the Round of 32 at the FIFA World Cup.

Condolences and support

“I would like to express my condolences to Didier Deschamps following the passing of his mother, and also offer my support to Joaquín Caparrós, my friend, after learning today that he is unwell. A warm embrace to both of them.”

On refereeing

“Officiating is very difficult, but there are tools designed to help. I am in favour of VAR because it exists to assist referees.”

On not conceding goals

“I am very pleased; it is a positive overall balance. The work this team is doing is remarkable. They have been excellent in reading every match. We have done what we needed to do. From now on, the level of demand will be higher. We have a solid team. I am happy and satisfied.”

On the match against Uruguay

“Every match is different, and these players are very good. We managed to rise to the challenge.”

Team analysis

“I am delighted to be here speaking because I am proud of this team. They are tireless and constantly improving. Every player who joins the group makes it better. We are a team with many possibilities. We can play in different ways; it is not always necessary to use a single system or fixed roles. They continue to surprise me. The team handled a very demanding match extremely well.”

On what comes next

“We will try to recover properly and rest well; there are many travel hours ahead. Recovery is essential for the players, and those details are very important.”

Group stage assessment

“In terms of fluency of play, we are still in a phase of improvement. Today was a very difficult match. We need to move the ball at the speed we are accustomed to.”