Lamine Yamal Set to Shine in Spain's World Cup Opener

Spain will walk into their World Cup opener with their brightest young star cleared for take-off.

Lamine Yamal, the Barcelona prodigy who scared a nation when his hamstring gave way in April, is in “perfect condition” to face Cape Verde on Monday, according to head coach Luis de la Fuente. The careful rehab, the late-season absence, the whispers about whether he would make it at all – all parked to one side.

He’s here. He will play. Just not for 90 minutes.

“The good news is that Lamine is in perfect condition,” De la Fuente told reporters on the eve of Spain’s first game. “He’s arrived at this point in the state in which we wanted him to be. He’s fine, just like Nico [Williams] and Victor [Munoz]. They’re all available, although some won’t play the entire game.”

The message is clear: the weapons are sharp, but they’ll be used with restraint. Doctors have given Yamal the green light for minutes, not a marathon. The same goes for Nico Williams, who has also been under fitness scrutiny.

“The doctors say Lamine can play tomorrow without any issues. Not to play 90 minutes, but to play some minutes, yes. The process with Williams is similar,” De la Fuente explained. “They’ve been working together a lot of days, a lot of hours, and with the relationship they have, they’ve been happy. They could play, if we think the game demands it.”

Chasing history, fighting history

Spain arrive with a target on their back and a weight on their shoulders.

Opta’s supercomputer has them as favourites to win the World Cup. On paper, they are the team to beat. On memory, not so much.

Since that golden night in 2010, their World Cup story has been a jagged line: a group-stage collapse in 2014, then back-to-back last-16 exits, both on penalties. Across their last six matches at the tournament, they have managed just one win (D4 L1) – the 7-0 demolition of Costa Rica in the 2022 group stage. One statement performance, wrapped in a run of frustration.

Yet the stakes could not be clearer. Having conquered Europe again in Germany two years ago, La Roja now chase a rare double: becoming only the fourth nation to hold the European Championship and World Cup at the same time. The standard is brutal. The opportunity is enormous.

Yamal’s presence, even in controlled bursts, changes the mood. Spain know they need more incision, more daring, more of the unpredictable. The teenager offers all of that, even if he only appears for half an hour.

Cucurella calm amid Real Madrid noise

While Yamal’s fitness dominated the build-up, De la Fuente also found himself fielding questions from another familiar front: the transfer market.

Reports suggest Marc Cucurella is close to a move from Chelsea to Real Madrid, a switch that would place him under an even fiercer spotlight. The Spain boss, though, brushed aside any concerns that the speculation might distract his left-back.

“If it’s good news for Cucu, or someone else, we’ll celebrate it,” he said. “I don’t talk about clubs, but if you ask me about Cucurella for the national team, he’s convincing.

“He’s been with us since he was 17. I know his performance, the quality and potential he has. He might be one of the best left-backs in the world, without doubt.”

For De la Fuente, Cucurella is not a transfer story. He is a pillar. A player he trusts in a position where certainty is priceless.

A familiar stage, a different Spain?

So Spain step into another World Cup with the numbers on their side and the scars of recent tournaments still visible.

They have the reigning European champions’ swagger, the supercomputer’s blessing, and a generational winger back on his feet. What they do not have is a recent World Cup record that frightens anyone.

Cape Verde will not be the game that defines their campaign. It will, though, reveal something important: how De la Fuente manages his stars’ minutes, how this side handles the expectation of being favourites, how quickly Yamal and Williams can flip a match if “the game demands it”.

Spain know what history says about them at this tournament. Now they have to decide whether to accept it – or tear it up.