In the south-west of Germany, near the borders with Switzerland and France, two small streams — the Brigach and the Breg — join to form the start of a bigger river that might sound more familiar.
The Danube, Europe’s second-longest river (and one that crosses 10 countries, the most in the world), begins in the town of Donaueschingen. This is where Spain’s football team are staying during the European Championship.
Just over 22,000 people live in Donaueschingen, spread across its seven boroughs. It is a pretty isolated place in the middle of the Black Forest that has been transformed by locals in an effort to welcome their guests this month.
Local shops and bars are decked out with Spain flags, and there is even an art exhibition showcasing what could generously be described as rather outdated images of Spain. For example, one depicts a bullfight on a football pitch — set amid a typical scene of the local landscape.
Not that Spain’s players will see much of it. They are based about five kilometres outside of town, in a luxury hotel complex called Der Oschberghof, which is used to hosting elite football squads. Barcelona spent a part of their 2021-22 pre-season here, Liverpool were visitors last year, and Bayer Leverkusen are expected later this summer, before the next Bundesliga campaign.
There’s not much to do apart from enjoying the hotel’s facilities and relaxing, and that’s probably why it’s been chosen. There are three golf courses and a gym now filled with specialist equipment brought over by the Spanish FA.
Some members of the Spain unit see the two-hour bus trip they will have to make to Stuttgart Airport before each game as the biggest downside. But they state it is a significant improvement on where they stayed for the 2006 World Cup in Germany, near Dortmund, and players seem quite happy.
“We are in a privileged area,” Dani Olmo said on Thursday. “We have a level of calmness that not many squads have, as far as I hear from other teams. It’s a perfect place to address a competition like this.”
So what do they get up to when they are not training?
There’s a tradition in Spain’s national team, dating back to the 2010s, of playing La Pocha, a very typical Spanish card game based on guessing how many tricks will be won. Chess is also popular.
Unai Simon, the Athletic Bilbao goalkeeper, is said to be among the best chess players in the squad, with close competition from Martin Zubimendi. Back in 2011, Real Sociedad’s holding midfielder was a regional under-12 chess champion in his native province of Gipuzkoa.
👀🔊 Presta atención y sube el volumen.
Métete dentro del último minuto del partidillo de la @SEFutbol escuchando cada golpeo, cada acción y cada palabra de los jugadores.
De verdad que merece la pena 😉.#VamosEspaña | #EURO2024 pic.twitter.com/oFOpwOn4E9
— Selección Española Masculina de Fútbol (@SEFutbol) June 11, 2024
Others prefer to play golf, and then there are those who clearly prefer video games.
Barcelona’s Pedri, Fermin Lopez and Lamine Yamal, as well as Athletic winger Nico Williams, are among the most avid EA FC24 players. It’s helped build bonds between them, and Williams and Yamal especially have developed a relationship that goes beyond being Spain’s biggest attacking threats.
“I always tell him I am his big brother, he needs to respect me,” Williams, 21, joked about 16-year-old Yamal this week.
“We have a good friendship. I try to advise him in the same way my elder brother (Inaki Williams) has done with me. I tell him not to overthink too much, focus on football and keep calm. At the end he is only 16, I even sometimes see him doing his homework in the hotel room here!”
Yamal said: “I’ve got along with him since my first call-up here. I enjoy playing with him because opponents need to cover both flanks, and I think it leaves the pitch more open for both of us. About being my big brother? I let him brag… but when it comes to gaming he knows I am his dad!”
Williams and Yamal during March’s friendly with Brazil (Mateo Villalba/Getty Images)
There are TV screens in communal areas players use for gaming but there are also spaces where members of the squad meet to talk and just pass the time. Here, it is common to see Alvaro Morata, team captain and one of the most popular members in the squad, holding court.
“Morata is one of the biggest voices. He is so funny and takes care of us youngsters,” Williams added.
“We all just laugh so much with him. He always has a story. Maybe the media don’t see this because when you have a microphone in front of you, you tend to be more serious and formal. But with his team-mates he shows his true self. I think all the younger players owe him a lot.”
There was a time when this sense of unity and harmony was missed in Spain. At the 2014 World Cup, then-manager Vicente del Bosque had to set up an urgent meeting with Iker Casillas and Xavi to try and ease tensions that had built up between Spain’s Barca and Real Madrid players at club level.
There are no such worries now. Madrid’s on-loan striker Joselu was the first Spain player to step out from the bench when Yamal was given rough treatment by Brazil in their March friendly at the Santiago Bernabeu. This week, Champions League final goalscorer Dani Carvajal had words of praise for the Barca youngster, who turns 17 the day before the Euro 2024 final.
“The other day I told Lamine that when I was 17, I was celebrating winning the Under-19 Copa del Rey with Madrid,” the 32-year-old said. “This kid is now important with Barcelona and Spain. It’s mad.”
The mood in the Spain camp is positive, but there are still fresh memories of their elimination from the 2022 World Cup in Qatar — which fuelled the departure of Luis Enrique. Criticism focused most intensely around the ‘lack of a plan B’. Luis Enrique faced accusations of being too stubborn for persisting with a possession-oriented game which, it was said, opponents took advantage of.
Some of those old criticisms still hang in the air under new manager Luis de la Fuente — who was appointed in December 2022 and led Spain to the UEFA Nations League title in June last year. Several players have faced questions on the subject this week.
“It is not the case that we always need to keep loyal to one style of playing, retaining possession and then losing the game,” Pedri said.
“I prefer to have a clear style of playing and something you tend to follow,” added Real Sociedad’s Mikel Merino. “But the style in this team relies on trying to be complete and adapt to different situations. Sometimes games bring you to paths you did not expect.”
Another media focus has centred on a supposed lack of star power compared to other nations — and to Spain’s golden age, when they won the Euros in 2008 and 2012, as well as the 2010 World Cup. During this past week of build-up, Morata pushed back on that, too.
“If Rodri was on social media and appeared in all the commercials, wouldn’t he be a world-class star?” he said.
“If Dani Olmo was as recognised in Spain as he is in Germany, where Bayern Munich and Premier League teams want him, wouldn’t he be a top player? Isn’t Lamine Yamal a star at 16? And what about Nico Williams? With what I’ve seen in the industry, he could cost €120m easily.”
On Saturday, the time for talking will be over. Their first test in a difficult group comes against Croatia, with games against Italy and Albania to follow. But in the sleepy town of Donaueschingen, Spain’s players are dreaming of Euro success.
(Top photo: Lluis Gene/AFP via Getty Images)
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