“We can dream in Qatar”

The Spanish Association of International Soccer Players, chaired by Fernando Giner, a former player for Valencia and the National Team, analyzes for AS the possibilities of Spain in the World Cup in Qatar. The Selection of Luis Enrique generates great expectations “for his youth, his self-confidence, his high pressure and his football to dominate rivals”. “But competing is one thing and winning another. Repeating the triumphant cycle of 2008-2012 with two European Championships and a World Cup won is today a chimera, but we can dream of a National Team that will give us joy”, they agree. These are his impressions.

Fernando Giner. (December 31, 1964, Alboraya. Former Valencia international player): “I am optimistic because there is a reality that supports my thinking. We have a National Team that in recent years has generated more confidence, a better game and good footballers. The results in professional football are the most important thing, but behind it there is everyone’s work, with Luis Enrique at the helm. He has made it possible for us to dream of achieving important goals. We have a very good National Team base and I think that in Qatar we will go far. There are teams, like Italy, champions of Europe and the World that are not going to be in Qatar. And Spain will go and with enthusiasm”.

Amavisca. (June 19, 1971, Laredo. Former international player for Real Madrid): “There is a lot of talk about experience, but sometimes it is better to be self-confident and not be afraid. We are a very young team, but that is good. My expectations are high because Spain can play football very well”.

John Lord. (August 26, 1958, Madrid. Former Zaragoza international player): “I expect a lot from Spain in terms of the level it is going to offer, but I don’t have too many illusions. Spain looks very good, there is competition and good players. But to win titles you have to be lucky, as was seen in South Africa 2010. I’m excited because Spain can beat anyone. I am confident that we will get through the first phase and from then on, every game will be a story”.

Raul Bravo. (April 14, 1981, Gandía. Former Real Madrid international player): “Spain is going to have its options. He has quality and good players. It won’t be easy, but we will have options.”

Ivan Field. (February 21, 1974, San Sebastián. Former Real Madrid international player): “What we expect from the National Team in the World Cup in Qatar is a team that excites us again, assuming that it is very difficult to win. But if we have already achieved it once, then we can achieve it again. What I like the most about Luis Enrique’s National Team is his joy, his youth and that high-pressure way of playing, to control the ball and the game”.

‘Wolf’ Carrasco. (March 6, 1959, Alcoy. Former Barcelona international player): “I expect a National Team that presses very high and plays with personality. I think that Spain is among the four or five favourites. What was done in the European Championship is what marks the way, and that can catapult us to a new stage of success. Perhaps not as much as the 2008-2012 cycle, because that is almost impossible to match, but it is a great time. Spain has the talent to reach the semi-finals, but then we can be fourth, third, runners-up or champions. Winning is very difficult.”

Quique Estebaranz. (October 6, 1965, Madrid. Former Barcelona international player): “We have seen Luis Enrique’s team evolve and it is not easy to win a World Cup with the level that exists, but I expect the best from the National Team and more from Luis Enrique. The Asturian will give us great joy with this team. It is not easy to repeat the Euro-World Cup-Euro cycle, but any chance of winning the World Cup must be taken advantage of and we will all be very proud if that happens”.

Richard. (December 30, 1971, Madrid. Former international player of Atlético de Madrid): “The National Team gives me very good feelings. Luis Enrique has formed a team that likes to dominate games, control the game with a lot of possession and that is a great advantage in our favour. But then everything will depend on the forwards, those from above. That we find a scorer who is fine in the World Cup and that ends that domain that Spain will surely have at least until the quarterfinals. Spain has been renewed and I like it. We are trained to reach the maximum”.

Ito. (April 14, 1981, Almendralejo. Former Real Betis international player): “I am very excited about Spain because it is a young team that will give us a lot of joy. Then there are the veterans, who give a lot of balance and tactical sense to the team. The best thing about Spain is that we once again dominate the games with handling and possession of the ball”.

Koke Contreras. (January 7, 1972, Madrid. Former Real Madrid international player): “What I expect from Spain in the World Cup is that it is a reflection of what it processes now: the freshness of young people who play happy football. There is a lot of enthusiasm and I think that in the end they will transmit that spirit to us in Qatar. Good times are coming with Luis Enrique’s Spain”.