Spain heading into Euro 2024 as "outsiders" instead of the pre-tournament favourites has aided La Roja, says Marc Cucurella ahead of Tuesday's semi-final against France.
Luis de la Fuente's side are looking to reach their fifth European Championship final, with only Germany playing in more (six), after remaining perfect through five games so far.
Spain needed a last-gasp Mikel Merino header for their 2-1 extra-time victory over hosts Germany in Friday's quarter-final, but Cucurella insists confidence continues to grow within the La Roja camp.
"Within football, there has long been respect for Spain, how we play and the players we have, but maybe coming in [to Euro 2024] as outsiders helped us," the Chelsea full-back said on Sunday.
"We started with the confidence of having nothing to lose. Now that confidence has grown and we are in the key moment of the tournament.
"I knew we had a great team, which has been proven. We have fought so hard to be here, and now we need one last big effort. Two more steps."
De la Fuente's team will meet an out-of-sorts France in Munich for their last-four clash after Les Bleus scraped past Portugal on penalties in the quarter-final.
Didier Deschamps' men once again failed to find the net across 120 minutes of action in their last-eight goalless draw on Friday, with only four goals scored by either team in France's five Euro 2024 matches thus far.
Indeed, all 128 non-penalty shots have failed to be scored (86 for France, 42 for opponents), while they are the only team on record since 1980 to have more than 50 non-penalty shots at a Euros and fail to find the net with any of them.
Kylian Mbappe's form remains a concern for Deschamps, too, with the Real Madrid-bound forward scoring just one goal from 20 shots at this edition, a penalty against Poland in their final group game.
Rather than excitement around Mbappe, who has scored just once from 34 attempts at the European Championship overall, most of the focus revolves around Spanish wingers Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams.
"With the Spanish national team, danger can come from anywhere," France midfielder Youssouf Fofana said at his pre-match press conference.
"Nico Williams and Yamal have had a great season, but I expect them to lose on Tuesday. We have to stay as solid as we have been so far in defence."
As for the criticism over France's playing style, Fofana insists he has no problem, adding: "In the end, we're in the semi-finals."
PLAYERS TO WATCH
Spain – Lamine Yamal
Yamal has created 14 chances at this tournament, the most by a Spaniard at a major tournament since Xavi en route to winning Euro 2012 (25).
The Barcelona winger's 14 chances created are also the most by a teenager at a major tournament that Opta has on record (since 1966 for World Cup, 1980 for Euros).
And the 16-year-old has three assists within that tally, too, with no Spanish player ever registering more at a single European Championship tournament.
France – Mike Maignan
Les Bleus have had their backs against the wall for large parts of this competition in Germany, placing a heavy burden on Milan goalkeeper Mike Maignan.
The Frenchman has a save percentage of 94% at Euro 2024 the best of any goalkeeper to have played more than one game.
Indeed, it is the best by a goalkeeper at a Euros tournament since Iker Casillas for the Euro 2012 winners Spain (also 94%).
MATCH PREDICTION: SPAIN WIN
Spain appear the narrow favourites to reach the final, with La Roja winning in 90 minutes in 38.1% of pre-match simulations by the Opta supercomputer.
France are still afforded a 31.8% chance of victory, with the draw – sending the tie to extra time and possibly penalties – forecast in 30% of the same data-led simulations.
Yet Deschamps will be well aware of Spain's quality, given De la Fuente's team have won 15 of their 19 matches since the start of 2023 – their 79% win percentage is the best of any European nation in that period.
Spain are the only team to have won all five games at this tournament, though no side has ever gone six in a row in the competition's history, nor triumphed in six matches across a single edition.
If La Roja can achieve that unprecedented feat here, then a place in the final in Berlin awaits against either England or the Netherlands.
OPTA WIN PROBABILITY
Spain – 38.2%
France – 31.8%
Draw – 30%
Reigning champs Glenmuir edge Kingston College to secure ISSA Champions Cup semifinal berth
Defending champions Glenmuir High kept their title defence alive with a 2-1 win over Kingston College in a keenly contested ISSA Champions Cup quarterfinal clash at the Montego Bay Sports Complex on Saturday.
A late winner from substitute Nyron Allen (90+1) broke Kingston College’s hearts and sealed Glenmuir’s semifinal berth after Denzil Watson’s 41st-minute goal gave the Clarendon-based team the lead. Demario Dailey (61st) found Kingston College’s goal in the encounter played in testing rainy conditions.
Glenmuir will square off against Ocho Rios High in one semifinal, while Jamaica College and Hydel will cross swords in the other to determine the finalists.
Winning coach Andrew Peart was pleased with how his team navigated the conditions and, by extension, a disciplined Kingston College defence.
“We got a lot from the substitutes; throughout the game we were always wondering how we could get a stronger foothold on the game because KC were really disciplined, but we made some adjustments to try and attack the game instead of waiting on a goal to come. So the lesson is to never give up and always fight until the end, and today was testament to that,” Peart said.
Both teams approached the encounter with energy and intent, despite heavy rain making conditions challenging. Players struggled to maintain footing on the wet turf, but the intensity of the game never wavered.
The breakthrough came in the 41st minute when Glenmuir’s O’Neil Headley delivered a well-placed corner to the back post. The ball was headed back across the goal, where Watson reacted quickest to fire home, giving Glenmuir a 1-0 lead heading into halftime.
Though down, Kingston College, true to their motto, came out more purposeful on the resumption, and their persistence paid off a minute past the hour mark when Dailey unleashed a speculative shot from distance. The ball skidded off the wet surface, deceiving Glenmuir’s goalkeeper Justin Murray, who was left flat-footed as the ball nestled into the net to make it 1-1.
The equalizer ignited the match further, with both sides creating chances. In the 66th minute, Watson broke through Kingston College’s defense, but goalkeeper Malique Williams charged off his line to make a crucial block.
Minutes later, Watson had another opportunity, but Williams once again stood tall, denying Glenmuir’s talisman.
Kingston College came close to taking the lead in the 81st minute when Dailey found space inside the box, but his effort hit the sidenetting, leaving the Glenmuir bench breathing a sigh of relief.
As the game edged toward extra time, Glenmuir found a moment of brilliance as substitute Ricardo Binns orchestrated a flowing move down the right flank. His precise pass across the face of goal caught Kingston College’s defence off guard, allowing Allen to dart in ahead of his marker and fire home from close range in time added.
Kingston College’s Head coach, Vassell Reynolds, was gracious in defeat.
“It was a good game from both teams. We had a plan, and right down to the T, the boys executed well. It is just unfortunate that we conceded when we couldn’t get back but really proud of what the boys delivered today based on what we planned. So I am pleased with the performance but not the result,” Reynolds noted.
Hydel book ISSA Champions Cup semifinal spot after dramatic comeback against Garvey Maceo
Hydel High School booked a spot in the ISSA Champions Cup semifinals after they came from behind to secure a thrilling 3-2 victory over Garvey Maceo in their quarterfinal clash at the Montego Bay Sports Complex on Saturday.
Goals from Dontae Brooks (20th), D’Sean Henry (58th), and Keyanni Jackson (75th) proved decisive for Hydel, who overcame early and persistent pressure from a spirited Garvey Maceo side, led by standout performances from Omarian O’Brian (12th) and Delano Thompson (60th).
The win ensured Hydel remained on course to lift the prestigious all-island knockout title as they joined Jamaica College and Ocho Rios High at the business end.
Winning coach Devon Anderson praised his team’s grit and character to bounce back after falling behind early.
“It was a workmanlike performance, we dug deep to pull off this victory. It was a hard-fought game from both teams so we went out there and did what we had to, as you can see the conditions wasn’t conducive but we don’t complain, we are always ready to deliver. We tweaked one or two things to seal a bit of loophole and the boys pulled it off,” Anderson said in a post-game interview.
After a fairly cagey start by both teams, the contest exploded into life in the 12th minute when O’Brian made a surging run down the left channel and rifled a right-footed shot in from close range to put Garvey Maceo in front.
Hydel, undeterred, pushed for the equaliser which they found just eight minutes later. A perfectly weighted cross from Henry found Brooks in a pocket of space, and the forward made no mistake from close range, calmly slotting home to restore parity at 1-1.
Ronaldo Barrett tried to give Hydel the lead in the 24th minute with a speculative left-footed shot from distance, but Garvey Maceo goalkeeper Garfield Tomlinson handled it comfortably.
From there, both teams exchanged a few half-chances for the remainder of the first half, but neither side could convert, leaving the score locked at 1-1 heading into the break.
A sudden downpour, which came just before the break, made the pitch slippery and slowed play at the start of the second half, but the intensity on the field remained undiminished.
In the 58th minute, Hydel seized the initiative when Jackson whipped in a pinpoint cross for Henry to head past Tomlinson and put Hydel 2-1 up.
However, their joy was short-lived, as Garvey Maceo responded immediately after. This, as O’Brian delivered a defence-splitting pass to Thompson, who made an overlapping run and smashed the ball home to level the score once again at 2-2.
The defining moment came in the 75th minute when Hydel launched another telling buildup in which Barrett played a clever pass back to Jackson at the edge of the six-yard box and the latter, with time and space, unleashed a clinical strike that gave Tomlinson no chance.
Despite Garvey Maceo’s efforts to find another equaliser, Hydel’s defence held firm to seal their place in the semifinals.
Garvey Maceo’s Head coach Lester Hibbert lauded his team’s valiant effort but rued lapses in concentration that cost them the game.
“It was a good performance but we made some errors in the backline and that cost us the game. We just had to get used to the conditions and play some football but at the end of the day, if you make mistakes and don’t score your chances it is going to hurt you and Hydel did put away their chances,” Hibbert said.
Fonseca urges Milan to take more risks after lifeless Juventus draw
Paulo Fonseca urged Milan to take more risks in future and sympathised with the fans who booed his players after an unexciting goalless draw with Juventus.
The two sides played out a game that included just three shots on target - one fell to Milan and two to Juve - while a chorus of boos greeted the full-time whistle.
Milan have not scored in two home matches in a row in Serie A for the first time since October-November 2023 (vs Juventus and Udinese in that case).
"When you don't win, and after a match like this, maybe if I was a fan I'd do the same," Fonseca told DAZN.
"I'm not a defender of this and I understand the fans perfectly."
Milan's only real chance before the break came through Emerson Royal, who headed wide of the near post after a corner, while a weak Theo Hernandez header straight at Michele Di Gregorio in added time was their only effort on target.
They registered just two shots in the first half, and only three times before have they managed less (on record from 2004-05), with two of those instances also coming against Juve.
"It was a very tactical match. The team had too much respect for Juve and Juve too much respect for us," Fonseca said.
"We know that Juve defend very well, it is not easy to have opportunities against them and those we had to attack we did not exploit well.
"We could have done something more offensively, we made a mistake in the last pass and we never took risks. It is not easy against Juve, but when we have the opportunity, we have to do better in the final decisions.
"The team always had the will to play safe but, if we want to score, we have to take more risks. Normally, we always create different situations. Today the team didn't take any offensive risks."
When asked if seventh-placed Milan - on 19 points with a game in hand - still stood a chance in the title battle, Fonseca responded affirmatively.
"It's difficult for other people, but I still believe. There are still many games and other teams can lose points," he said.
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