National team coach sees future partnership between Real Madrid and Barcelona defenders | OneFootball

Spanish national team coach Luis de la Fuente has spoken highly of Real Madrid’s young defender Dean Huijsen and has also hinted at the possibility of him forming a long-term partnership with Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi in the heart of Spain’s defence.

In an interview with El Larguero, De la Fuente praised Huijsen’s maturity and calmness on the ball, qualities that remind many of the legendary centre-back duos from Spain’s golden era.

The coach did not rule out the idea of pairing the Real Madrid and Barcelona youngsters, just as Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos once anchored the defence during Spain’s most successful period.

Huijsen winning the trust

So far, the opportunities for Huijsen and Cubarsi to play together have been limited.

De la Fuente has mainly relied on Huijsen since his debut, often choosing him ahead of Cubarsi, which shows the level of trust he has in the Madrid defender.

Speaking after Spain’s 6-0 win against Turkey, the coach explained why he rates the youngster so highly,

Dean Huijsen is now a national team regular. (Photo by Alex Bierens de Haan/Getty Images)

“Dean has a calmness and maturity. We were talking earlier about Lamine, and Huijsen is similar.

“He has good ball control, vision and, above all, the ability to face any situation with calm, composure and responsibility, a lot of responsibility.”

Huijsen has frequently partnered with Robin Le Normand, but De la Fuente has made it clear that Cubarsi remains in the picture.

“They [Huijsen and Cubarsi] can absolutely be… Cubarsi already has a lot of experience and matches”

When asked if he would keep Huijsen and Le Normand as a fixed pairing, the coach replied: “He has played many top-level games with Barça.”

Both defenders are still young, with Huijsen at 20 years old and Cubarsi at 18.

While the Real Madrid defender is already establishing himself as a regular under De la Fuente, Cubarsi is seen as a player with enormous potential who will only grow in importance.