"All teams have flaws" - Spain boss Luis de la Fuente names Euro 2024 favorites ahead of Germany quarterfinal clash
Spain manager Luis de la Fuente has named his side as the best team at the UEFA Euro 2024. This comes after their Round of 16 win over Georgia to set up a quarter-final against hosts Germany.
La Roja were the only team to maintain a perfect record in the group stages of the tournament. They beat Croatia (3-0), Italy (1-0), and Albania (1-0) without conceding a single goal. They faced Georgia, who are making their debut at the Euros, in the Round of 16 at Cologne Stadium on Sunday, June 30.
Despite conceding an early goal, Spain put up an excellent performance to win 4-1. They will now face Germany, who beat Denmark 2-0 in the Round of 16, in the quarter-finals.
After the Georgia clash, Luis de la Fuente highlighted his side's dominance and labeled them the best team at Euro 2024, saying (via Metro):
"The match is 8-1 or 9-1. The objective is to win another match and knowing that we are going to play against Germany.
"With all due respect to the other players, we have the best team and players in the world. That doesn’t mean we are sure to win, but we are going to fight for it."
He admitted that every team has flaws and it would be a close match against Germany but still exuded confidence, saying:
"All teams have flaws. We have our own set of tools and also our weaknesses. Germany is a great team, with great individual players and they work very well as a team. They are facing a very similar team, very organised, difficult to beat, very hungry.
"It will be a very close match and it will be the details that will determine the match. We are very confident in ourselves."
The two sides will face off in the Euro 2024 quarter-finals at the Stuttgart Arena on Friday, July 5.
A dominant Spain get past a fiery Georgia in Euro 2024 Round of 16
Georgia have impressed many on their debut at Euro 2024 due to their fight, determination, and ability. They lost against Turkiye but then drew against Czechia and beat Portugal to reach the Round of 16. They also opened the scoring against Spain in the 18th minute through Robin Le Normand's own goal.
However, La Roja were incredibly dominant and continued to probe at the Georgian defense. Rodri equalised in the 39th minute to make it 1-1 at halftime. Fabian Ruiz (51'), Nico Williams (75') and Dani Olmo (83') completed a comfortable 4-1 win.
Spain had 76% possession and attempted a whopping 35 shots with 13 being on target. Georgia, meanwhile, could only muster four total shots, with none being on target.