Luis de la Fuente’s (Haro; 63 years old) attachment to the number 13 was the result of a process similar to the one he followed to turn around the critics, to convince the suspicious, to win in his own way the fourth Euro Cup in the history of Spain and seduce the world of football with traits that seemed designed for a world far removed from the brilliance of this industry.
On March 8, 1981, at the age of 19, he was sitting on the visiting bench at the Luis Casanova stadium in Valencia when Argote, Athletic’s left winger, was injured. De la Fuente, who had not yet made his league debut with the first team, was a left back, but Iñaki Sáez, who later coached the under-21s and the senior team (like him later), decided to give him a chance and put him on the field: “As well as the logical nerves of his debut in a league match, he had the handicap of coming onto the pitch cold and in an unexpected, but not unfamiliar, position,” wrote the El Correo columnist. He came on wearing number 13. It was the 13th minute of the second half. Bad omens for anyone apprehensive about finding themselves like that, out of place on the field and for their first time. Not for him. He ended up playing 13 seasons in the First Division in which he won two Leagues, a Cup and a Super Cup with Athletic.
He then began to find more positive things associated with the number 13: goals in that minute, happy personal events on that day. That ability to determine what matters mean to him that other people interpret in a more questionable way has been fundamental for the Spanish coach to have reached the moment of glory on Sunday night at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin and, above all, to have done it in his own way, after the general prediction was that he would have a hard time even making it to Germany on the bench.
With the title, he avoided passing the buck: “Now the easy thing would be, in a gesture of weakness, to show some reproach. I am not going to do it. And if anyone needs to review any comment, there are the newspaper archives.”
His figure could not be more countercultural in a world of haughty and designer football: a strong bullfighting fan since he played for Sevilla, a fervent Catholic and a fan of Julio Iglesias. After beating Germany in the quarter-finals after extra time in Stuttgart, when they arrived at the hotel after midnight, he went up to his room to rest. But he was warned that a handful of members of the delegation had gathered in the bar. He went down and ended up singing karaoke. Julio, of course.
He is a great joker. And an incontinent joker. Even on the eve of the final, when he went from interview to interview at the Olympic Stadium, unable to avoid the occasional sarcastic rhyme. The sometimes stiff-necked man who appears in public appearances before the press has little to do with the affectionate guy who is always ready for a laugh at short distances. One of the members of the security team who watched over the SV Aasen facilities where they trained, spent the month of work with a signed photograph of the coach hanging around his neck on the plastic of his accreditation. De la Fuente was the one who spent the most time stopping by with all those who worked there.
He has also made progress in public. As the tournament progressed and he left behind a trail of world champions – Italy, Germany, France and England – he has gained confidence, always under the supervision of the psychologist, Javier López Vallejo, who while he speaks takes a place among the journalistic troop. “I try to give him the emotional balance necessary for him to make the best decisions and to have as few regrets as possible,” he explained in this newspaper.
De la Fuente made his debut after his first list with a tense press conference in which he faced a dozen questions about why he had not included Sergio Ramos. After his second match, a 2-0 defeat against Scotland, he also looked out of place and exposed to the fire of attacks. Last Tuesday, after eliminating France in the semi-finals, he referred in some way to the thorny path he had taken to redeem himself that night in Munich: “I accept criticism. I have always accepted it, and I think I am also an expert at assimilating it.”
Several people who have been close to him, from his time as a footballer until now, say that he has a titanium conviction that is resistant to any friction. In part, he attributes this to his Catholicism: “I am a man of faith, a fervent believer. A lot of faith,” he said shortly after arriving at the national team bench. “It is good for me. It gives me a lot of strength when it comes to making decisions, also with a certain enlightenment, with the support of God.” On match days, his friend Justo, from the team, lights a candle to the Virgin of the Vega de Haro, takes a photo or a video and sends it to him.
During his stay in Donaueschingen he was not able to go to mass as usual, but he did pray daily and maintained other routines that contributed to this mental fortification. He did not miss the daily aperitif at the end of the morning with his staffall of them recruited in the federation structure. Nor his hour of training in the gym, very early in the morning: he gets up very early because he barely sleeps four hours. That time moving weights, in addition to keeping him strong and defined, provides him with a fairly intimate space for introspection that he considers essential for the balance of his mind.
The journey, like his love affair at number 13, has strengthened him: “You might say, ‘how boring this man is.’ No. I have had things clear for a long time. I am a gladiator. I come from the earth, from the circus, from being there fighting,” he recalled the day before the final. “I am happy. I only keep the good things. I don’t have time to accumulate negative things in my life. I only remember the good times.”
He did, however, recall that everything he said when he was appointed was true and not a pose to distance himself from the style of Luis Enrique, the outgoing coach: “I know the players very well and we just needed time to put into practice everything we are showing now,” he said the day before the final. It was a return to the arguments he used when he was appointed from the questioning of those who reproached him for not having experience on the bench of a big club, even though he had been in the lower national teams for more than a decade: “Nobody knows the present and the future of Spanish football better than me.” And that was the case, as Rodri recalled on Sunday: “The mentality of the team is something that is cultivated. Many of us were champions of the under-19s, the under-21s… The manager knew what he was doing.”
His approach to the game was also as he had announced. He said he wanted to be more vertical and he has captivated the world with an unforgettable tournament. Spain started the Euros in Berlin, where they finished. The day before that match against Croatia, Gvardiol, Rodri’s teammate at City, was asked about De la Fuente. “Who?” he replied, bewildered. It happened on June 14, but it could just as well have been the 13th.
On July 14, already a champion, he began receiving a bunch of messages. He will take a while to reply. He takes his time to write something unique to each person.
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