FIFA ranking: 7

How they qualified: UEFA qualifying group B winners

2018 World Cup performance: Round of 16

Previous World Cup appearances: 15

Best result: Winners (2010)

 

Background

Spain are back at another World Cup and they will be hoping to forget their last two miserable performances. Many have begun to rule out Spain as one of the world’s dominant sides, but a strong showing at Euro 2020 and an unlucky penalty shoot-out defeat against eventual winners Italy has changed the minds of many football fans. While this Spain team can’t compare to the squads between 2008 and 2012, it still possesses enough quality to surprise opponents. La Roja managed to qualify for the 2022 World Cup with relative ease, finishing top of their qualifying group ahead of Sweden, although they dropped points against the Swedes as well as Greece along the way. Spain were one of the lowest-scoring sides to qualify for this winter’s World Cup, having only scored 15 goals in eight games while leading up to the World Cup they only scored eight times in six games – and only one goal in four of those games – scoring goals is a real problem for this Spain side.

 

The Coach – Luis Enrique

Luis Enrique will be taking charge of Spain at his first World Cup as manager, after impressing with his side at last year’s European Championships, where Spain missed out on the final via a penalty shoot-out defeat to Italy. The Spaniard had a successful playing career as a midfielder and is one of the few players to have crossed the Real Madrid-Barcelona divide after he joined Barcelona from bitter rivals Real Madrid in 1996.

That Barcelona education has led to the manager he is today, with Enrique preferring a high-pressing, possession-heavy type of football, with quick transitions from defence to attack. Many have criticised the 52-year-old for some of his Spain selections, most notably for Euro 2020, where Enrique selected a 24-man squad despite being allowed to name 26 players, with no Real Madrid players selected. That being said, Enrique is a manager who only chooses players that are right for his desired style of play, no matter their status at club level, and some of his early performances have justified his selections thus far.

 

Key Player – Alvaro Morata

While the current Spain team does not possess clear-cut key players like the past teams of Casillas, Puyol, Xavi, Iniesta, and David Villa, there are still a handful of players that are crucial for Enrique’s style of play – one of these is striker Alvaro Morata. Alvaro Morata has perhaps not lived up to his early promise, first breaking through at his local club Real Madrid in 2010, after which spells at Juventus, Chelsea, and now Atletico Madrid followed. The Spaniard was not able to establish himself at any of these clubs, but he still remains key to Luis Enrique, with the Spanish coach stating at Euro 2020: ‘’My team is Morata and ten others.’’ While Morata has not been overly prolific for Spain up to this point, scoring only two goals in World Cup qualifying, he is integral to the Enrique way of playing, with even the striker pressing high up the pitch.

 

Predicted Line-up

 

World Cup Chances

Today’s Spain team is definitely inferior to the squads of 2008-12 when looking at the names, but there is now a new generation of talent emerging, with players such as Eric Garcia, Gavi, Pedri, Nico Williams, and Yeremy Pino slowly creeping into the fold under Luis Enrique. While these players are still young (20 or under), they have already shown glimpses of brilliance that suggest Spain could be on the rise in 2022 and beyond. Jordi Alba and Sergio Busquets are now the last two members of the old guard, and they will be crucial in passing on their experiences to this new generation.

Spain still possess great talent in midfield, with players like Rodri, Koke, and Pedri able to unlock defences, however, the rest of the team brings up some question marks. Spain lack a clinical finisher in the style of David Villa, while there is also uncertainty over the centre-back combination, and goalkeeper selection – although Athletic Bilbao shot-stopper Unai Simon has seemed to convince Enrique. While not many fans expect much from Spain at the 2022 World Cup, the same was said before Euro 2020 where Spain only narrowly missed out on the final. One thing is for certain – never underestimate Spain.