Pedro Porro is grateful to De la Fuente for making the team a big family.

Spain, the "La Roja," will face formidable rivals France in the 2026 World Cup semi-finals. Tottenham Hotspur defender Pedro Polo stated that at this stage of the tournament, there are no longer any so-called favorites, and he expressed his gratitude to manager De la Fuente for building the team into a true family.

In the crucial quarter-final match, Spain defeated Belgium 2-1 after goals from Fabian Ruiz and Merino, giving them confidence for the semi-finals.

In France, Deschamps' team defeated Morocco 2-0.

26-year-old Spanish defender Pedro Polo said, "I think I have more match experience. In a year, a player will probably play 50 more games, and these games will help him grow. Every game brings different gains. Rather than saying I am better prepared, I would say I have more experience now than before."

“I don’t feel tired. From the outside, we have indeed flown to many places, but we live at our own pace every day and don’t think too much about it. We are always traveling between different cities, and we hardly feel how many kilometers we have flown. The team has recovered very well, and now everyone is focused on the semi-finals.”

Pedro Polo pointed out, "Head coach De la Fuente is a very important figure for us. He is the one who has created the family-like atmosphere of the team we have today. From day one, whether I played or not, he made me feel like an important part of the team."

“Every game has different requirements. Sometimes I need to participate more in the attack, and sometimes I need to focus on defense. For example, against Belgium, I combined with Yamar to create scoring opportunities for the team, but for most of the game, my main task was to limit Doku, and everything depends on the characteristics of the opponent.”

When discussing the favorites to win the title, Pedro Polo said, "At this stage of the tournament, there are no longer any favorites. Both teams are world-class, and it will be a thrilling and intense semi-final. Of course, we hope that Spain will ultimately win."

“We’ve worked together for a long time, participated in many matches, and gotten to know each other better and better. We always treat every match like a final; that’s our mentality.”

Image source: Internet