Luis de la Fuente says he brought off a ‘tired’ Lamine Yamal in Spain’s Nations League final defeat to Portugal as he needed to inject some ‘energy’ into his side.
Sunday night’s showpiece had been widely billed as a meeting between five-time Ballon d’Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo and 17-year-old Barcelona sensation Yamal – one of the frontrunners for this year’s prize.
And it was Ronaldo’s Portugal who eventually prevailed, but it took extra-time and penalties to decide the victors after an absorbing contest at Munich’s Allianz Arena.
Nuno Mendes cancelled out Martin Zubimendi’s opener with a superb low strike beyond Unai Simon in the 26th minute, only for Mikel Oyarzabal to restor Spain’s advantage at the end of a frantic first half.
But Ronaldo outmuscled Marc Cucurella to find an equaliser for the Portuguese just past the hour mark before Roberto Martinez’s men came out on top via a nerve-shredding shootout.
An emotional Ronaldo was pictured in floods of tears as Portugal secured the title for a second time, six years after winning the inaugural tournament in 2019.
Meanwhile, Yamal and Co were lift to lick their wounds, with the teenager clearly less than impressed to be taken off for Yeremy Pino midway through extra-time in Germany.
‘We wanted to give the game a bit more energy,’ De la Fuente told reporters at his post-match press conference when quizzed on the decision.
‘The introduction of Yeremy Pino and Alex Baena gave us that energy, that control of the game that we had lost, as well as our finishing and shooting.’
De la Fuente believes Yamal was showing signs of fatigue after a long and gruelling season, in which the youngster had made 62 appearances in all competitions for club and country.
‘He is tired because he has been competing since Thursday, there has been little rest. He has had a very difficult year,’ the Spanish head coach added.
‘He is 17 years old and we have to behave accordingly.
‘Today, we understood that it was time to replace him to give another player the opportunity to come in, so that he brings a little more energy.’
Ronaldo urged fans to give Yamal the time and space he needs to develop at his own pace prior to the clash.
Speaking in the mixed zone after Portugal’s victory, he repeated the sentiment, while backing the winger to enjoy a ‘very long career’ at the top.
‘He’s going to win a lot of titles, both collective and individual,’ the 40-year-old Portuguese captain told Spanish outlet Mundo Deportivo.
‘He’s only 17 years old… I repeat: he’s a kid with a lot of room for improvement.
‘He’s a phenomenon, but we have to leave him alone, that’s what I ask.
‘He has a very long career ahead of him and will surely win the Nations League many times.’
On De la Fuente’s decision to bring Yamal off, Ronaldo replied: ‘Your coach is a phenomenon.
‘He knows better than I do what the team needs… I’m not a coach.
‘He’s already won several titles with Spain. What more do you want me to say?
‘If the coach made the decision, it was because he thought it was the best thing to improve his team.’
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