Vicente del Bosque speaks about Wednesday´s Italy-Spain clash in Bari
Spanish national team boss Vicente del Bosque has given his thoughts on Wednesday´s friendly with Italy in a Press conference, and insists he is not even thinking about a repeat of November´s 4-0 mauling at the hands of Portugal..
- Last minute withdrawals, injuries, little training, a lot of travelling, the Spanish Super Cup...Could something similar to what happened in the friendly against Portugal happen against Italy?
I don´t even want to think what happened in Portugal can be repeated. The players are responsible and know everything has changed since Spain became World Champions. Both the clubs and the national team have their own space and the most important thing at the moment is the game against Italy.
- Italy want to play the Spanish way. What advice would you give them?
Italy are going through a phase of renovation. They are doing well in the Euro 2012 qualifiers and are playing good football. They´ve changed their style to accommodate the players they have, but there are not many differences. I am not one to give advice to Italy and in any case Spain can learn a lot from a country that has been World Cup winners four times.
- Have you got a plan for the match?
I would like Thiago to make his debut and we´ve already addressed that. We will be sensible with players who have to play official games with their clubs, but in reality we can only make six changes so five will have to play the full 90 minutes and another four will have to watch from the stands, which hurts me the most.
- What qualities do you see in Thiago?
He has the necessary quality to play for Spain in central midfield. He is capable of defending but also wants to get in the box and create. I acknowledge it is a problem for me to have so many good midfielders to choose from.
- Does the national team´s success guarantee the future?
Spanish football is experiencing a unique moment and we have to take advantage of it without relaxing.
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