Ahead of Spain’s round of 16 match against Morocco, Gavi sat down with Marca to talk about his World Cup experience.
Digesting the defeat to Japan
“It wasn’t easy at the beginning. We wanted to win, and to top the group. The coach had warned us that it was the most difficult game, and that no matter what we heard, we had to be clear about that. And that’s how it was. Then the hours passed and we began to see things differently. We are in the last 16 and there are very good teams that have not been able to make it [to this stage]. That’s why we have to really think that the pressure is a privilege,” he explained.
“The match against Japan has to serve as a learning experience for what’s to come. Fortunately, that defeat has been solved and we know what we have to do. We’re not going to lose focus on our objective, which is to win the World Cup, and we’re going to do it by staying true to what we’ve been doing all these years. It would be a mistake to give up everything we believe in right now. We have to take note of our mistakes, correct them and go for the World Cup with more conviction than ever. We’re going to give our all in every game. That’s non-negotiable.”
The exuberance of his youth and the shyness caused by public exposure does not stop Gavi from defending Spain’s way of playing and that the way forward is not to have another plan.
“No, I don’t think that’s what it’s all about. We know that our way of playing will always be the same. What happened is that we stopped doing that, moving the ball from side to side, doing what we do best. We have to learn a lot from that game. I’m sure the group is mature enough to do that,” he added.
GSFN | Kieran Quaile
