Martín Zubimendi has said he’s surprised by the criticism of Spain‘s midfield — and captain Rodri — after their World Cup got off to an underwhelming start by drawing with underdogs Cape Verde.
Spain now go into Sunday’s game with Saudi Arabia in Atlanta under pressure to justify their status among the favourites to win the tournament.
The European champions’ all-star midfield of Rodri, Fabián Ruiz and Pedri was unable to find a way through Cape Verde’s defence, with criticism in the Spanish media for coach Luis de la Fuente, and Ballon d’Or winner Rodri.
“I haven’t been following it too much, but it surprises me,” Zubimendi told journalists ahead of Spain’s training session in Atlanta on Saturday. “With the midfield Spain have, it isn’t exactly something that slows down the play. We have players with a lot of mobility, with the ability to play with just one or two touches.”
While Pedri has excelled for Barcelona in a more withdrawn role, de la Fuente picked him at number ten, although dropping him deeper would mean disrupting the established double pivot of Rodri and Fabián Ruíz.
“Rodri has shown just his worth at [Manchester] City, and with the national team,” Zubimendi said. “He’s not to blame. He was fine the other day. He’s had better games of course, but we can’t blame him at all.”
De la Fuente praised Zubimendi — who was an unused substitute against Cape Verde — as a potential future Ballon d’Or winner earlier this month.
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“I’ve got a long way to go!” Zubimendi said, laughing, on Saturday. “But it shows the faith he has in me, he knows me well at youth level. That’s the message I get from him, and I’m happy.”
Zubimendi began last season well with Arsenal in the Premier League, before losing his place in the side towards the end of the campaign.
“It’s been a tough year,” Zubimendi said. “I’ve played a lot of games. At one point I felt fatigued, but right now, being here with the national team, I’m fine.”
