Cucurella: Yamal is much more mature than his peers, players like this are always unpredictable

In an exclusive interview with "Daily Sports", Spanish defender Cucurella talked about the current situation of the national team and the topic of Yamal.

Is the Spanish national team already full of atmosphere for competing in the World Cup?

- We are just one step away from our target, having had a perfect qualifying campaign, but if we are not focused enough in the last two games (against Georgia and Turkey) victory could slip away. We hope to seal the win in Georgia on Saturday and then return to Sevilla on Tuesday to celebrate with the fans.

Spain is close, but Turkey is only 3 points behind

- At this point, it is almost impossible to do better, and even if we perform like this, we cannot guarantee promotion now. This shows that football doesn’t give you anything for free, you have to work hard. It's up to us, and that's a good thing. Hopefully we can win on Saturday and not have to suffer on Tuesday.

Is there anything more exciting than participating in the World Cup?

——All my teammates who have participated in the World Cup told me that it was a unique experience, incomparable. We have an opportunity this year and hopefully we can seize it and start chasing our dreams.

Regarding the situation in Yamal

- it is indeed complicated. It wasn't easy for him, a lot of players, including a lot of my teammates, had groin pain. We will miss him, he was very important to us. The most important thing is that he recovers because the next year is going to be exciting.

What advice would you give Yamal?

- The most important thing is that he enjoys the game, continues to maintain his form, ignores criticism, and continues to play in the way he is familiar with. He handled it well and had no reason to get lost. He has a bright future and is far more mature than his peers. If he can focus and enjoy the game, he will be difficult to stop.

The Champions League match between Chelsea and Barcelona is coming soon. Will you talk about this game with your Barcelona teammates, especially Yamal?

- No, we don't have much time. He told me that after the national team game we were rivals and it would be a good game and a good test for us. We are very much looking forward to this game.

Do you know Yamal well?

- I know a thing or two; I've trained with him a lot. At the end of the day, these players are unpredictable; it just depends on their form. It's going to be a tough battle, but a good game.