Considered one of the brightest young talents in the world, Lamine has scored only once in the World Cup so far and is far behind leading scorers Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, who have eight goals each.
However, de la Fuente said Yamal has shown increasing maturity, pointing to the teenager’s defensive contribution in Spain’s win over Portugal, and hailed his attacking quality to make a difference when it counts.
“He’s going to perform on the offensive front,” De La Fuente said.
The coach said Spain’s success was built on collective effort rather than individual talent, stressing that each player put the team first.
“What is bad for the hive is bad for the bee,” de la Fuente said, citing a quote from Roman emperor Marcus Aurelius.