The 3 Spain players who’d definitely start for the 2010 World Cup winners | OneFootball

The reigning European champions Spain have taken their domination to the global stage and added the World Cup to their cabinet – we’ve seen this story before.

Spain are currently echoing their golden era, when they won the Euros in 2008 and 2012, either side of their first World Cup win in 2010.

After beating Argentina in the 2026 World Cup final, they’re now two-thirds of the way to repeating that monumental run.

So, is their current team just as good as the 2008-2012 side? In a nutshell, not quite.

Spain’s previous World Cup winners were a revolutionary team with some of the best players of all time in their respective positions: Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Iker Casillas, Carles Puyol and so on.

But they didn’t have a Lamine Yamal coming through either…

We’ve picked out the three members of Spain’s successful squad from this year who we think would have got in their 2010 side.

Lamine Yamal

He didn’t quite light up the World Cup like we thought he would, but Yamal has still become one of the youngest winners at the age of 19.

The 2010 Spain side was built with an overload of midfielders and not as many explosive wingers like Yamal.

There’d be a headache about which midfielder to drop, or it could even be the pre-existing winger Pedro, but someone with Yamal’s ability in attack would have added another dimension to the 2010 team.

In fact, had they had a teenager like him ready for world domination at the time, they might not have crashed out so badly in their title defence in 2014.

Marc Cucurella

“If we win the World Cup, I’ll call Luis [de la Fuente] the next day and tell him not to count on me anymore, that I’m retiring from the national team,” Cucurella vowed ahead of the final.

“With a European Championship and a World Cup, I can’t do any better.”

International football? Completed it, mate.

Whether Cucurella sticks to his word or not, we’ll see, but we’re confident he’s better than 2010’s starting left-back, Joan Capdevila.

Capdevila was a capable player in his prime, but was nearing the end of his career when he won the World Cup with Spain.

In contrast, Cucurella is 27 and has just earned a move to Real Madrid after four years with Chelsea. This is his peak and it’s loftier than Capdevila’s was.

Rodri

The closest call of them all, this, but Rodri has been on another level at this World Cup.

Spain had the great Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso as their midfield anchors in the 2010 final, but it’s fair to say the more progressive Xavi and Iniesta were more highly regarded.

In this current Spain side, it’s the enforcer Rodri that takes the lion’s share of the acclaim. Being named the best player at Euro 2024 and the 2026 World Cup hammers home his importance to his country.

Of course, Spain weren’t short of midfield quality in their original heyday. But at his best – which he has been this summer – Rodri is that good.