Spain’s growing influence on world soccer will be on full display at next week’s Ballon d’Or gala, the annual award ceremony honoring the sport’s top performers.
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influence → grow → performers
The shortlists reflect how Spain, after years of winning men’s and women’s titles, has turned into a major exporter of coaching expertise.
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Spain → reflect → expertise
After decades in the shadow of Italian, English and German counterparts, Spanish coaches are now in high demand as both clubs and national teams seek to tap into the philosophy credited for Spain’s success on the world stage.
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clubs → seek → stage
Celebrated coaches like Pep Guardiola and Luis Enrique have brought Spain’s possession-based style of play to Europe’s top clubs, with some adjustments.
“The cornerstone to the high esteem that Spanish coaches are enjoying now is their training and, above all, their ability to adapt to different contexts in European and global soccer,” Iván Cancela, who heads the Spanish soccer federation’s coaching academy, told The Associated Press.
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who → bring → Press
The latter won last year’s Cruyff award – named after the Dutch great – and is a top candidate again after winning a second consecutive Champions League title with Paris Saint-Germain.
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latter → win → Germain
Luis de la Fuente is another top contender after winning the World Cup with Spain this summer.
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Fuente → win → Spain
He led Spain’s Under-19 and Under-21 teams before taking over the senior side and has also taught courses for future managers organized by the Spanish federation.
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He → lead → federation
“We are pioneers in coaching coaches for a long time now,” De la Fuente said last month.
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Fuente → coach → time
“We are an example to follow when it comes to coaching coaches, it is the root cause of why our coaches stand out.”
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coaches → follow → coaches
Benítez paved the way
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Benítez → pave → way
It was relatively unusual for Spanish coaches to work abroad until Rafael Benítez made the leap to Liverpool from Valencia in 2004.
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Benítez → work → 2004
Many have followed in his footsteps.
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Many → follow → footsteps
Spaniards now make up the largest nationality group among Premier League coaches, with five teams managed by Spaniards.
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Spaniards → make → Spaniards
Two of them are candidates for the men’s Cruyff Award: Mikel Arteta at defending champion Arsenal and Unai Emery, who won the Europa League with Aston Villa last season.
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who → defend → Villa
Spain had 107 coaches employed abroad in first-and-second-division clubs last season, up from 99 the previous season, according to UEFA, European soccer’s governing body.
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Spain → have → UEFA
Spaniards also are being recruited by other countries’ national teams.
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Spaniards → recruit → teams
More than a dozen national teams currently have Spanish coaches, including Qatar, Czech Republic, South Korea and the Netherlands, which recently hired former Barcelona star Xavi Hernández.
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which → have → Hernández
In a way, Xavi’s move to the Netherlands is a full-circle moment because Spain traces its style of play back to Cruyff – who played for Barcelona in the 1970s and returned as coach in 1988.
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who → trace → 1988
Cruyff established a new playing philosophy in Spain based on maintaining possession and moving the ball with short passes between players constantly re-positioning themselves.
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Cruyff → establish → themselves
That style of play impacted how Spanish coaches spotted and developed talent.
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coaches → impact → talent
“The Spanish player isn’t the fastest, they aren’t the strongest, or the tallest,” Cancela said.
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Cancela → say → ?
“But in my opinion, and I say this without wanting to sound boastful, but I believe that the Spanish player is the one that best interprets the game and is the most talented.”
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that → say → game
Tiki-taka and its upgrades
Luis Aragonés, Spain coach from 2004 to 2008, made the possession-based approach a national trademark with a team built around midfield maestros Xavi and Andres Iniesta.
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approach → make → Xavi
The so-called tiki-taka style lifted Spain to new heights with back-to-back European Championship titles in 2008 and 2012 and the country’s first World Cup trophy in 2010.
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style → call → 2010
It eventually hit a wall as Xavi and Iniesta retired and Spain failed to translate possession into goals.
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Spain → hit → goals
De la Fuente, who took over as head coach after Spain’s quarterfinal exit at the 2022 World Cup, modernized the system with faster attacking transitions, using one-on-one wingers like Lamine Yamal and Nico Williams to challenge defenses from the flanks.
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who → take → flanks
Spain is now back at the top, with the 2024 European Championship title followed by the World Cup trophy this year.
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title → follow → trophy
Meanwhile, Spain rose to become world No. 1 in women’s soccer with a team built around a core of Barcelona players like Aitana Bonmatí and Alexia Putellas, now at London City Lionesses.
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Spain → rise → Lionesses
They faced off in May in the Women’s Champions League final, which Barcelona won 4-0.
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Barcelona → face → which
One-touch drills to hone passing skills
One thing that stands out with how Spanish coaches have been training their teams is the emphasis on drills involving the ball.
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coaches → hone → ball
“You used to see lots of drills in training that were not using the ball, but in Spain the drills are all based on situations you can see in a real game,” said Javier Cano, president of EFA Pro, an association of professional Spanish coaches.
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Cano → use → coaches
“That is the great advantage that Spain has had for the past two decades.
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Spain → have → decades
A good example is the Spanish “rondo,” or piggy-in-the-middle drill, that Cruyff made central to training in Barcelona.
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Cruyff → make → Barcelona
The drill, whereby a small group of players must pass the ball between them in a compact area while one or two teammates try to intercept it, enhanced the basic skills of using one touch to execute – as well as open slight angles to receive – short passes under pressure, again and again.
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teammates → pass → pressure
That clockwork efficiency in keeping the ball has been evident in Spain’s World Cup victories for both men and women.
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efficiency → keep → men
The Basque Country stands out
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Country → stand → ?
One of the quirks of this generation of elite Spanish coaches is how many of them come from northern Spain, specifically the Basque Country.
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many → come → Spain
De la Fuente has family roots in the Basque Country, the home region of Emery and other coaches like Julen Lopetegui — who led Real Madrid and Spain — and José Mendilibar.
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who → have → Madrid
Arteta, Chelsea coach Xabi Alonso and Andoni Iraola of Liverpool played together as youngsters at Antiguoko, an amateur club in the Basque city of San Sebastian.
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Arteta → play → Sebastian
Antiguoko vice-president Roberto Montiel perfectly recalled the trio of young boys.
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Montiel → recall → boys
…and 4 more, not listed.
The Aporia
