Austria coach Ralf Rangnick said football fans around the world would love to see Lamine Yamal play, but stopping the Spanish winger from showcasing his talent will be one of his side’s top priorities in the World Cup round of 32 on Thursday.
Spain have brought the 18-year-old back into action after he tore a hamstring in April, limiting him to just 141 minutes in the three group games, scoring once.
“Lamine Yamal is an excellent player, and he will be for the next 12, 13 or 14 years, maybe even longer,” Rangnick told reporters on Wednesday.
“If he stays healthy and keeps his head on his shoulders, he can play a lot of games.
“He is one of the players we will keep a close eye on tomorrow, not to give him too much space or too many opportunities to start his dribbling actions.
«He is a player that all football fans, wherever they come from, love to watch. But our job tomorrow is to let him have the ball as little as possible.»
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Austria scored six goals in three group stage games, one more than Spain, but Rangnick acknowledged his side would have to raise their level against a team unbeaten in 34 games dating back to March 2023.
«We all know we have to do even better tomorrow. This is clear against Spain,» Rangnick said. “We have to take it one step further.”
Austrian captain David Alaba, who spent five seasons at Real Madrid, said they were fully aware of the quality Spain have at their disposal.
«They play very attractive football. They have enormous qualities and individual players who can make a difference,» Alaba said. «But we don’t want to hide. We really want to play forward and try to be successful.»
Austria will be without defender Phillipp Mwene due to injury, but Rangnick said his team had plenty of options to overcome absences and remained confident they could challenge one of the tournament favourites.
Published on July 2, 2026
