When big meets little: Rodri on Spain's need to modernise and roll with the times

Interview: The young Spaniard believes the national side needs to toughen up if it's to stand any chance of returning to the summit of international football

Back in 2010 when Spain’s ‘Bajitos’ (the little guys) were ruling the world, 14-year-old Rodri was watching at home on television. The Atletico Madrid midfielder is from that lucky generation that grew up believing it was normal for Spain to win tournaments – they won the Euros two years before, and again two years later.

On Saturday he will be at Wembley as the new-look Spain take on England. He’s gone from being a Sergio Busquets fans to being his team-mate and even, some say, heir.

What is striking is how much the narrative has changed in just eight years. “Now it’s not enough to play well,” he says. “You have to defend well and you have to have a physical presence too.”

Rodri has insisted that Spain need to harden up if they're to keep up with the demands of the modern game (Getty Images for ICC)

Did the Xavi, Iniesta revolution never happen? He has plenty of respect for those players. This is more a recognition from someone who represents Spain’s future, that Spain’s tiki-taka takeover over football is gone now.

They were the smallest team in South Africa in 2010 with the likes of Pedro, super-sub Jesus Navas and top-scorer David Villa beating a brutal Dutch side in the final. But if there is ever to be a repeat Spain will need to be get physical once more.

“I was so happy and so proud when we won those tournaments,” says Rodri, who was an Atletico Madrid trainee at the time. “We had only ever won one European Championship in our history and it was a major leap forward. I watched it thinking: ‘I hope that’s me one day.’”

“In 2008 I was watching Marcos Senna and Xavi, Iniesta and Santi Cazorla they were the ones that imposed that winning style, a style that kept evolving.”

Sat pitchside at the Spanish Football Federation's headquarters, filling one of the tiny Perspex dug-outs, he makes it clear that evolution needs to have a major physical component.

“Now because your rival is working on the physical side more, you also have to. That’s why more work is done on preparation. I think the stand-out factor, sometimes but not always, is the physical side as well as the quality of the player.”

This swing back to strength, speed and stamina has come in part because of three insipid tournament performances. Spain played over a 1000 passes against Russia in the last-16 but they failed to punch their way out of the home nation’s paper bag – they looked lightweight, flat, even feeble at times.

Rodri might have to wait his turn before he becomes a Spain regular. If he is to remain a holding midfielder than he must get past Busquets.

Perhaps under Diego Simeone he will evolve and find another way of breaking into Luis Enrique’s 4-3-3 chosen formation.

Rodri watched Spain lift the World Cup as a 14-year-old used to the national side's success (Getty Images)

He is relishing working with Simeone at the club he joined in the summer from Villarreal.

“It’s going to help me to become a more complete player,” he says. “You have an idea of him beforehand and then when you work with him and that gets reaffirmed. He’s a coach who transmits a lot of energy. He wants us to have that energy and that will to win.

“He wants us to compete – to score more goals than the other guys. Winning is the priority. Then you can ask: can we play better? And I think you have to play well to win. But the idea is to compete and give everything.”

He agrees that Luis Enrique is cut from similar cloth to Simeone. “The better prepared you are the better you are going to compete,” he says. “Of course the important thing is the ball and what you do with it but you need to be physically right. How is your body going to react to the situations that arise in a game? Having that physical capacity can only be an advantage.”

Rodri could get minutes at Wembley and if not, is expected to start against Croatia on Tuesday. Is there a pressure on this group to emulate the Spain greats?

Rodri is relishing working with Diego Simeone at Atletico Madrid (AFP/Getty Images)

“First of all we feel good about the fact that we have been picked and that the coach wants us to be part of this transition that people are talking about. As far as the past goes. I think what has happened – both the good things and the bad – doesn’t affect us.”

And it's clear to him from watching the last World Cup that there are more candidates for the biggest prizes now.

“We have seen that anyone can beat anyone. We are all starting from zero under the new coach, believing we are the best but being aware that we have to demonstrate that.

“I think the World Cup was England taking that big leap forward. They have always had top players but perhaps as a team things have not worked quite so well. But looking at the last World Cup, they have a very clear idea about how they want to play.

“They have the talent to play together at a high tempo, they don’t just have that direct style to their game anymore. They are a difficult opponent.”

So maybe Spain and England are moving in from opposite poles.

The irony is that Rodri himself had coaches doubting him because he was small back in 2010. He says the idea Atletico got rid of him because of his size is wrong but admits: “It’s true I was a late developer. When I left Atletico I had not grown as much as some of my team-mates. I shot up a bit later."

He’s now a towering presence on the pitch for club and country. And he speaks intelligently for his 22-years. The discourse is clear: “The ball still matters for Spain, but unless they can match sides stride for stride in other areas they won’t earn the right to play.”