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De Lafuente decides to go on an adventure
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente announced La Roja’s lineup against Cape Verde on Monday evening in the first round of Group H of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
De la Fuente decided to keep Lamine Yamal on the bench, especially as he is still coming back from the injury that kept him out of Barcelona’s final matches of last season.
Meanwhile, the surprise came with Xavi’s inclusion on the left wing, where De La Fuente opted to rely on him instead of Dani Olmo and Alex Baena, knowing the youngster has previously played in this position for Barcelona.
The Spanish coach chose Unai Simon to protect the matador’s den after competing with Juan Garcia and David Raya.
The full lineup was as follows.
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Goalkeeper: Unai Simon.
Defensive line: Llorente, Cobarci, Laporte, Cucuria.
Midfield: Rodri, Pedri, Fabian Ruiz.
Forward: Xavi, Ferran Torres, Oyarzabal.
On the bench are Lamine Yamal, Neko Williams, Victor Muñoz, a trio recently back from injury, alongside Raya, Juan Garcia, Eric Garcia, Bubil, Pedro Porro, Grimaldo, Zobimendi, Mikel Merino, Baena, Olmo, Jeremy Pino and Borja Iglesias.
Group H will feature Spain and Cape Verde, along with Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.
