De la Fuente erupts in anger over the Yamal accusations: I cannot stand lies, and your ignorance is regrettable!

Luis de la Fuente, the Spain head coach, has confronted head-on the criticism and insinuations aimed at Lamine Yamal, after some questioned the Barcelona star's desire to join up with the La Roja camp in preparation for tomorrow's match against the Czech Republic in the UEFA Nations League on Thursday, or spoke of him receiving special treatment compared with the rest of the players.

De la Fuente cut a visibly angry figure at Wednesday's press conference. Asked about those who believe Yamal "dodged" the national team, he hit back: "Speaking from a position of ignorance is the saddest and most regrettable thing in life."

The Spain coach insisted Yamal's absence had nothing to do with the player wanting to stay away. A physical problem forced it. "Lamine suffered an injury and felt discomfort in his knee. He went for the usual treatment, and they discovered fluid in the knee and inflammation. That required rest."

As highlighted by the newspaper "AS", he explained: "Our medical staff, in coordination with his medical staff, and I, decided that the best thing was for him to stay at his home and train with his club, and to join us on Friday. Is that clear now?"

He did not stop there. The coach confronted claims that Yamal receives special treatment within the national team head on, insisting the player is treated exactly like his teammates.

"I am here to clarify that inside the dressing room," he said. "This is what I mean by the sophists, I am here to clarify the matter. He does not enjoy any privilege."

De la Fuente went on: "We would have done the same thing with any other player. It does not bother me. We miss all the players who are not with us. This is football, and these are injuries."

Both Yamal and Mikel Oyarzabal are moving in the right direction, the coach confirmed. "I spoke with Lamine Yamal and Oyarzabal, and the development is good. He is doing a series of exercises and we think he will be with us on Friday."

His anger at the news and insinuations around Yamal flared again. What bothers him most, he said, is the spread of information he regards as inaccurate.

"There are things that reach me, and what hurts me most is the lying, and the absence of accuracy, credibility and fabrication," he said. "In the face of that, I try to reveal the truth."

"That is why I sometimes say more things than I should," he added. "This is my way of revealing reality, through data. I cannot stand people who try to deceive you and lie to you."

Rodri's absence came up too, and De la Fuente touched on its impact on Spain's style, arguing that no player's qualities can ever be fully replaced.

"Everyone has similar characteristics, but every detail cannot be compensated for," he said. "For me, the best player in the world in this position is Rodri, and Zubimendi is the second."

He added: "Zubimendi is very useful to us, and gives us what the team needs, even if in a different way."

Spain are 43 games unbeaten. De la Fuente refuses to let his players settle for that, and a win over the Czech Republic tomorrow is the goal.

"We must look for every point of motivation," he said. "We already have great motivation, and we want to secure the competition for first place with England."

"I was talking about the ambition of this group," he added. "We want to keep achieving. No one expected us to reach 35 matches, but after we reached 43, we want to reach 44."

Who starts in goal? De la Fuente would not say, joking: "If I tell you yes or I tell you no, then I have already given it away. I will be inventive."

He then added: "Whoever we put in, he will perform well. I did not know Vallés, but he fits our philosophy. Within two days he became one of us. That makes me very happy. And Álvaro, with his understanding of the context, has also become one of us."

Special praise went to Unai Simón, whom the coach called "the best goalkeeper in the world". He lauded the keeper's character and his growth since they first met when Simón was sixteen or seventeen years old.

England can wait. De la Fuente stressed that the looming clash does not dent his side's focus before the Czech Republic game: "No, because we want to win tomorrow. There is only this match."

He added: "It is very important, because we do not know the result England will achieve in their match tomorrow. We have to go out to win."

Aymeric Laporte will not train because of a viral condition, he revealed, and the staff do not yet know how ready he is for the match.

A warning followed about the challenge the Czech Republic pose. The last meeting between the two sides in Spain was anything but easy, the coach stressed.

"The match we played in Spain was difficult to settle," he said. "They have a good team, and they proved that against us. Here tomorrow, in front of their fans, the match will be very difficult."

He also praised Santi Denia, the Czech Republic coach: "He is my friend, and I spoke with him this morning. I know him well and I learned a lot from him. He taught me how to be a national team coach. He will do a great job."

On the future of Dani Olmo's number 10 shirt, De la Fuente said he spoke with the player last week and that his condition was improving.

He explained: "The numbers are chosen by the players according to seniority. The matter does not concern me, and I have no obsession about it. I do not know who will choose the number."