Match by match Fiama Benitez (Denia, 2004) explains this You can be a promise and a reality at the same time. She stood out at Levante, shone at Valencia, shone at Atletico Madrid, for which she has become a great reference – she is the top scorer with nine goals in 17 matches – and then knocked loudly on the doors of the Spanish team, with whom she will now play in the Nations League final against Germany, after having been one of the key players in Spain’s successes in the lower categories.
How are you? Are there really nerves for the final?
Very happy to be here. More than just nerves, they’re eager to get out there and play.
How do you approach a home-and-away final? Did the coaching staff give you any indication before the first leg?
We will not consider the double match. Let’s think about our first one in Germany. First, to win this win, get the biggest advantage possible and then come back and win again. We want to win both games.
The return will be in Spain. Would it be an added incentive to be able to celebrate at home if they manage to retain the title?
The truth is that we are keen to be able to play at home, to be able to give joy to the fans, to have fun all together, and to be able to celebrate this title with our people.
It will not be an easy match, we will have a very strong competitor like Germany.
We know it is a great team, with very good players. It’s a final and finals are usually very close. We face it as it is, knowing that we have to go into detail. We want to win it.
The last matches were very close: they took the bronze medal at the Games and Spain won the European Cup semi-final
We do not focus on previous results, but on matches to find out the details that need to be improved. We are ambitious and want to win. We know it’s a great team, but we also know our potential.
Since the arrival of Sonia Bermudez, there has been talk of a new phase. What changed with it?
She’s a very close coach. It shows that she was one of us, that she was here and she was a player. This piece of understanding you have is very important to us. He gives us a lot of freedom, he knows all of us, and he tries to keep the group very together. It is also very important for all of us to have a coach who understands us in this aspect, who communicates with those who play and those who do not play. He runs the group very well, his ideas are very clear and in line with what this team is and its identity.
“You should never take anything for granted, I try to work every day to be here as many times as possible.”
From the outside, it appears that this turbulent period that the Union is experiencing has ended. Is there some buzz now, for example, with Rubiales and his book?
I didn’t hear anything. We only talk about football, the final, and that we want to win and be the best. This team has earned everyone’s respect, both here and abroad. So, we focus on football, it is what suits us, and the rest is noise.
He knows Sonia Bermudez from the lower brackets, and since she arrived there have been two rosters and she has been on both. Do you feel that you are starting to settle into the absolute?
You should never take anything for granted, it’s a conversation I have often had with myself. I try to do my best and work for my club and my teammates. Fortunately, Sonya depends on me, I am calm in this regard. I do things well and then the call will come or not, and I always respect the decisions of all coaches and selectors. I try to work every day to be here a few times.
Play in an area of the field where there is a lot of competition. What do you learn from playing alongside Ballon d’Or players like Aitana or Alexia?
I’ve always said that, for me, it’s lucky to be able to share the dressing room, the field and the center with them. They are great players, Ballon d’Or players. I try to learn as much as possible. I watch them, I watch their movements. I will stick with everything, on and off the field. Moreover, I am lucky that they are very good colleagues, they help me a lot, and they help me to be better. For me, it’s lucky, and in any way I can help my team and the national team, I try to contribute.
He is only 21 years old, but he is already a reference at Atletico Madrid. Do you feel this pressure?
I don’t focus too much on that. I always try to lead by example, regardless of the numbers, statistics or what is said. I try to be myself, be a good teammate and a good player.
This is his best season, and he’s already surpassing his numbers from last year. How do you live it?
I know what it’s like to start. I think we’re off to a very good start together. I’m lucky to share my closet with the people I share it with, they help me a lot. I try to contribute everything I can, with goals or assists. I want to win, learn and grow every day, and that’s what I do.
There was a very important step forward in his game. Has anything changed in your preparations?
Yes, I increasingly surround myself with more professionals. What we see now is not work from recent times, but from a long time ago. What is happening is that the results are showing now, but I have been working for a long time with my personal team and with the club. Mentality is also very important. I think the most important thing is the change in my mindset, being able to focus more, and be more decisive. Things are going well for me and I don’t worry when things don’t go well, because football has its ups and downs. Be consistent, work and listen to the people around me.
“The key to my character and maturity are my parents… I try to keep my feet on the ground, and also be smart about what I do outside of football.”
What advice do they give you?
Well, be decisive. Depending on the person and the profession I’m in, I hear one thing or another. I have a nutritionist, a physical trainer, coaches, analysts… I think the key is also my height on the field. Now, I’m in higher areas, where I can give more and I’m closer to the goal. It should also be stable, noise aside. Always there, but focused on what I need to do, on improving and helping my team.
Atleti have started well, but if there is one thing missing it is consistency. What do they need to make this leap?
We have to understand that we are a new team playing during the week and we are all adapting. More than anything else, we need to be more consistent, regulate loads, and know when we can pace the game, or when we are more tired and have to do other things. We’re new at this, I’d say, but we really want to do things well. Out of desire it will not be.
He speaks with great maturity, despite his age. You studied law, starting at Levante at a young age, then moving to Valencia… How did these experiences help you grow?
A lot of people tell me this too, that they forget that I’m 21 years old. I even forget too. I’m a little impatient about some things. But I think going through the stages so early, so quickly, and everything so quickly, made me mature a little bit more. I surround myself with people who are older than me, who are in the national team today, like Esther, Alba or Maria Mendes, with whom I shared a very small dressing room and from whom I learned a lot. Also, training abroad helped me a lot. But I believe the key to my identity and maturity is my family, especially my father. I listen to them, they advise me, and my whole life is thanks to them. I try to keep my feet on the ground. Also be smart about what I do outside of football. Learn from everyone. I’m 21 years old and I have a lot to learn.
Talk about your parents. Your roots are Argentinian, and your mother also played soccer, although she wasn’t professional. How did this affect you?
I carry it naturally. It helps me a lot. Both, my father helped me a lot. The word effort for me is theirs. They immigrated to another country and had to make a new life. It is better for us to listen to them. In my mother’s case, she obviously couldn’t devote herself to what she wanted, so for me, it’s lucky that I was able to fulfill the dream that she wasn’t allowed to have. Through responsibility, listening to them and knowing how lucky I am, because I can do what I love, and in addition, with my classmates, I open many paths for future girls.