Spain manager, Luis de la Fuente, has ruled out a starting role for Lamine Yamal in Spain’s 2026 World Cup clash against Cape Verde, opting for a cautious approach as the Barcelona winger returns from injury.
Although the 18-year-old Barcelona winger has fully recovered from a left hamstring injury suffered on April 22 and is training normally, the coaching staff have decided to ease him back into action from the bench.
Lamine Yamal has not featured competitively since that setback, but De la Fuente stressed that the player is fit enough for limited minutes and will be carefully managed to avoid any recurrence.
“The best news is that Lamine is in great shape, he has prepared very well and is training very well, just like Nico (Williams) and Víctor (Muñoz). He is available, even if he won’t start the match, we’ll see how the game unfolds,” said De la Fuente.
“He is ready to play today without any problem. Not for 90 minutes, but to come on at some point, he is in perfect condition to play a few minutes. If that weren’t the case, he wouldn’t even be on the bench.”
The Spain coach also addressed growing expectations around his team, which is widely viewed as one of the tournament favourites, but insisted the race for the title remains wide open.
“What does that mean in sports? It puts you among the potential contenders, but only one can win… I value it because it pays tribute to the exceptional journey of some players. I had never seen a World Cup with so many real contenders to win it,” he added, while still stating that La Roja has the “best midfield in the world”.
