According to Sport, despite Rodri's poor recent performance, he remains the cornerstone of Spain's midfield.

Rodri is the captain of this new Spain squad. With Morata absent, Rodri has assumed leadership responsibilities in the dressing room, alongside Unai Simón, Oyarzabal, and Ferran Torres. On the pitch, he is also a leader, though his performance has not yet returned to the level he showed previously with Spain. A serious knee injury last season and some muscular issues this season have affected his return to the form that earned him the 2024 Balón d'Or, but De la Fuente still has full confidence in him.

Rodri is having more difficulty than before cutting off opposition transitions and controlling the tempo of the game, which has also affected the entire team. He is the primary architect for moving the ball side to side, but his passing speed is not as quick as before, and the team's overall performance has suffered. Pedri, alongside him, often becomes the only outlet for midfield orchestration; without his defensive partner in peak form to help, the Tenerife native has to shoulder more ball-handling responsibilities, but he is often a key target for opponents in midfield, which creates problems for him too.

However, De la Fuente has no intention of dropping the captain. Even Martín Zubimendi, Arsenal's midfielder who arrived at this tournament as a champion and is in excellent form, finds himself on the bench. Alongside Zubimendi, Eric García and even Gavi also have the chance to compete for this position. Gavi even played as a false winger on the left wing in Spain's opening match against Cape Verde.

In any case, De la Fuente must find better ways to make the midfield more dominant after several rather flat performances. Apart from the Saudi Arabia match, the change brought about by Olmo's inclusion in the starting lineup was crucial. However, the La Rioja manager does not entirely approve of the Pedri-Olmo pairing in midfield, believing it is too risky against physically strong opponents like Uruguay. Meanwhile, Fabián's role is also striking; after the opening match against Cape Verde, he has been relegated to a super-sub position.

De la Fuente has many midfield options, but against "La Celeste" he did not play his cards well. Merino, who was still finding his rhythm, started, but the result was not ideal. Spain's team looked flat and did not play with fluidity. Zubimendi and Eric García are the two leading candidates for this position, but despite the manager's repeated public praise, they have not yet received a single minute of playing time.

The players have accepted their roles professionally, but their performances during the season have been good enough to deserve some opportunities. The Arsenal midfielder led Spain's midfield during Rodri's injury and performed quite well. His best match in a Spain shirt was probably the 2024 European Championship final, when he came on as a substitute in the second half and delivered a textbook performance as a defensive midfielder.

As for Eric García, he was originally selected as a centre-back, but Cubarsí and Laporte's solid partnership has kept him out of the starting lineup. However, the Martorell player could also be used to bolster the midfield, and his chemistry with his Barcelona teammates in this position is very evident.

So the debate continues, but De la Fuente still seems to prefer sticking with Rodri. Against Cape Verde, Rodri rested for only 3 minutes; Nico Williams was brought on urgently at that point as Spain pressed hard to secure a winning goal.

Traducido por IA.

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