“We spend the whole day together playing tennis on a machine gun” | Relief

Aasen (Germany).- When Luis de la Fuente repeats that Spain still has room to improve, he has people like Dani Olmo (26) in mind. Not because the Terrassa player hasn’t given everything he has, but because the technician still has bullets in his chamber to surprise. The national team is not (and will not be) just Niko and Lamine. The Leipzig playmaker was ruled out of the pre-EuroCup friendlies by calf discomfort and condemned to the bench for the first two games against Croatia and Italy, but now he believes he is your time has come.

Against Albania he came on and against Georgia, starting from the bench, he scored a great goal, completing the victory in the 1/8 finals (4-1). His brilliance and Pedri’s poor performance in Cologne give him a chance of making the eleven against Germany. He knows his opponent better than anyone – he has spent five seasons in the Bundesliga – and wants to show the world that he is already one of the world’s stars. The market window also matters: stay open to an exit and Barca, Bayern and England’s Great Players They watch him closely. The attacker visits Relevo after training and leaves no questions unanswered for 48 hours after the meeting, before Mannschaft.

Danny, since we’re only getting 12 minutes, we need to get down to business and people are interested in what they’re interested in. Do you want to play on Friday?

Always always (laughter). There is always a desire to play, especially in a match like this and against an opponent like Germany. We are very motivated.

Do you think you have done enough in this Eurocup to make it into the eleven?

Well… I try to use everything that is given to me, both in training and in games. The coach knows me very well and knows what I can give him. I try to contribute to the group in any situation.

And most importantly: do you think you will play?

I always look forward to playing. If I don’t believe… who will? We’ll see what eleven the coach decides, but whatever he does, I’ll be on top with the team.

Does everything smell different this week?

Of course. It’s a quarter-final against Germany, the hosts! They will have their own people, but we can’t complain. We see that there is a lot of red wave in the stadiums too. It motivates us in a special way.

With 48 hours left until one of the most important games of your career, do you feel more nervous and excited between expeditions?

Desire. And above all, calm. We have been doing very well since the start of the tournament. We don’t need to go crazy about the quarter-final against Germany now. They are one of the best teams in the Euro, as they have proven, but to win the title you need to beat the giants.

You know your opponent very well. What is the best thing about Germany?

Their group and personalities are superior. They are very unbalanced players: Musiala, Havertz, Wirtz… And Gundogan and Kroos, who control the game only together. I also emphasize the defensive reliability that Rüdiger, Tah, Schlotterbeck give them… It doesn’t matter who plays. He is an opponent that must be taken into account in all areas.

Among the defenders you didn’t mention Raum or Henrichs, your teammates in Leipzig…

I leave them, I leave them… (laughter).

Have you exchanged messages with them yet?

Yes Yes. I have spoken, but the minimum. No need to say much.

And did you give Lamine any advice on how to beat Raum? In principle, he will be the starting left-back.

I told you something(laughter), but I’ll keep that to myself. They’re my teammates and I know them very well, as they know me. I’ll try to be a little more unpredictable to throw them off.

Let’s get back to you. So far you’ve only played in the starting line-up against Albania and it’s all been decided. You were the first to join the camp in Las Rozas and said that calf discomfort had prevented you from playing in previous friendlies against Andorra and Northern Ireland. How have you spent these weeks knowing you could lose your place?

The specific plan was simply followed from day one. I couldn’t play the last two games against Leipzig mainly for prevention and to come to the Eurocup completely fresh. I had been inactive for some time and hadn’t trained fully with the group, so we decided to follow an individual plan with Antonio (Gomez), physical education coach. It had already been established that he would not participate in two friendly matches. And we did it well, because now I feel one hundred percent.

Tell us the truth: hours before your debut against Croatia, did you think you would be in the starting lineup? It caught our attention that you were chosen to speak at a press conference just two days before…

If you had thought about it before going to the press conference? No, no… We have a plan with the marketing team, and since it was a special match against Croatia, I already assumed that they were going to use me in this sense. I have no idea.

How did you cope with this role and that against Italy, for example, you didn’t play for a minute?

I think in such a short tournament we all have to contribute. We are all important and that is how we should feel because this is the reality. Both the coach and the captain(Mora) They convey it to us like this. The Eurocup is not won by a player or a starting lineup, but by 26 people and staff. I want to play, but what the coach says is done.

And after the match with Albania, did you think that you would win in the 1/8 finals?

You always think about it and want to play in the starting lineup, but not doing so is not a disappointment. You hope you have a few minutes, you think you will make it in… and that’s how it happened. I always try to show and help. We had a good game against Georgia and I left with my first goal at the European Championship.

Grimaldo told us in an interview that his best friend in concentration is Cucurella, his rival. How do you get along with Pedri?

Very good, very good. We spend most of the day together playing tennis on the machine, sitting next to each other at the table and watching the games… We haven’t seen each other for a long time because of injuries. (refuses to mention the word)but I get along great with him.

What does Pedri bring and what does Olmo bring?

We are different players. I play in my club. 10. I can tell you what contribution I can make; We all know Pedri already. I try to stay upright, always looking forward, looking for the last pass and combination with 9 and even go down to feel the contact with the ball and feel comfortable.

We know that De la Fuente is very talkative and likes to “spoil” you. Do you usually talk a lot? Did he explain anything to you?

Yes, we talk. He talks to everyone. Sometimes we comment on games, feelings, talk after a hard training session… We have typical conversations between players and coaches, nothing more.

He sees you as more of a playmaker than a striker. Do you also prefer to play as a number 10?

Yes, I am used to playing in my club. Here (in choise) I have played as a striker or a forward, but De la Fuente knows me very well. We have been together for many years: U-21, Olympic Games… He knows where I can perform better.

Hey, how did you end up wearing number 10 on the national team?

I like it. I already took him to the U-21 team and I could have invited him to the national team in March. I decided to take him and keep him for the Euro.

In recent days, everything about La Roja has been personalized in Nico and Lamine, but there are also champions of everything, who are the best in their position (Carvajal, Rodri…) or important players like you. How do you deal with it? Is there jealousy?

How are you, how are you. As long as they continue to do what they do on the field… I can only advise them to have fun. The good relationships that exist off the field will ultimately only be enhanced on the field.

A mandatory question, replacing the third: how is your future?

That’s how it should be: the people I trust know my idea and what I want to do. I’m focused on the European Cup and winning. Most of you know the conditions that are on the table.

Your contract with Leipzig ended in 2024 and last summer you decided to extend it until 2027. Why did you decide to do this if, for selfish reasons, you would have benefited more from being released?

Well… Last year wasn’t very clean. I didn’t consider a free transfer simply because of the club’s attitude towards me. Vino Max Eberl (former sports director), we had several conversations with him and with Marco Rose (trainer) and we decided to extend. I wanted to continue winning and fighting for titles. We won the Super Cup and the Leverkusen League closed its doors on us. We’ll see what happens next season, but my goal remains the same: to win.

If you were to return to Spain, would you only choose Barça or are you open to other options?

This is what you put(laughter). I am open. I repeat once again: the people I trust already know what I want to do. I am focused only on the European Cup.

Interesting question: did you apply to participate in the Olympic Games? Did you want to?

Because of my age, it didn’t affect me. It wasn’t my generation, so to speak. They didn’t tell me anything. I already had the opportunity to perform in Tokyo. It was something unique. From here, I send a huge hug to those who are going.

And since you are not going to be in Paris… have you already decided where you will spend your vacation starting from July 15th, and not from July 6th?

That, that, starting from the 15th. Well said. Not now. I’m sure I’ll go to Croatia for a few days. The rest… Maybe I’ll spend a week in Mallorca, I have friends there. I’ll try to relax for the first few weeks.

We’ll leave it here. Thank you and we hope to see you here next week.

Yes, yes, thank you.