He is Barcelona’s teenage wonderkid, inspiring Spain to the brink of World Cup glory. But his name is not Lamine Yamal. Even more significant than the extraordinary young winger has been the contribution by Pau Cubarsi in the centre of defence.
The 19-year-old centre-back was supposed to have his work cut out against Kylian Mbappe and that formidable France forward line. Instead, Cubarsi remained serene as Spain won 2-0 - keeping a sixth clean sheet in seven games so far at this World Cup.
Only Rodri has made more passes than Cubarsi at the tournament but this time the focus was different. Aymeric Laporte made 76 passes to his 32. The job was to use his pace and defensive nous when one-on-one to stifle the man who nobody could stop.
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One tackle on Mbappe summed both performances up. Nobody made more clearances than Cubarsi on the night. It was a defensive masterclass that would not have surprised former Barcelona player Oscar Garcia. He predicts that Cubarsi will become a legend.
"It is difficult in the youth department for people to talk about you," Oscar tells Sky Sports . "Normally, they will talk about a Lamine Yamal, a Lionel Messi, these kind of players. Not a centre-back. But for me, Cubarsi is fantastic." How fantastic, exactly?
"I am sure he will be one of the top five centre-backs in history."
It is a big claim but then Cubarsi is one game away from joining an elite club. There are only four men to have started and won a World Cup final, Pele and Mbappe among them. On Sunday, Cubarsi and Lamine Yamal could swell those ranks by 50 per cent.
Why? It is his quality on and off the ball, both of which have been evident this summer. Cubarsi is not the tallest defender around but he is among the quickest and relishes the duels. "In those one-on-one situations, he is really strong - and clever," says Oscar.
And once in possession of the ball, Cubarsi's distribution is more than just sound, it is positive and progressive when it needs to be. There are only a handful of players - Messi and Michael Olise included - who have made more through-balls at this World Cup.
No one has played more passes into the opposition half.
Lamine Yamal has said that Cubarsi is one of the three best in the world at bringing the ball out from defence. There was a glimpse of that against France. In the quarter-final against Belgium, it was his shot that was spilled by Senne Lammens for the winner.
"He is really young, but he is very good in the build-up because the first pass by him, it is always fantastic," says Oscar. "He eliminates a lot of players from the opposition and does not miss the passes." His pass completion rate at this World Cup is 96.2 per cent.
It is all quite remarkable because to be doing this as a teenage centre-back is rare. It is a role that demands expert decision-making that only comes with experience. But Barcelona backed his talent and gave him those minutes at an astonishingly young age.
Cubarsi's debut in LaLiga came before he turned 17 and he has now made well over 100 appearances for Barca. "If Hansi Flick had to choose one defender to start every game, it would be Cubarsi," says Oscar. The same is now true of Spain coach Luis de la Fuente.
It has been a learning curve, as one might expect. Being in the Estadio Metropolitano in April was a chance to bear witness to one of his more difficult moments. Cubarsi was sent off against Atletico Madrid, the defining moment in their Champions League exit.
"To play as a centre-back at his age, for the big teams, it is the most difficult position," Oscar explains. "Because if you leave a lot of space behind you then you have to be very clever and very fast to be able to read the game." And Barcelona leave a lot of space.
"I like that they are really brave. They put the line of defenders very, very high. They leave the space because they want them to be close to press the opponent. They are not afraid to play against fast players like Mbappe and Vinicius Junior with this same style."
The defensive line for Spain is not always as high as it is for Barcelona but Cubarsi still has to leave that space in behind. And he is learning all the time. No player at this World Cup has successfully played the offside trap more times than Cubarsi. "He is so mature."
Brilliant and still improving. Now World Cup history beckons for Barcelona and Spain's other teenage phenomenon too. "Everybody talks about Lamine Yamal and he is obviously a fantastic, decisive player," concludes Oscar. "But, for me, Cubarsi is key."
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Sources: Sky Sports
