“You have to look at the intelligence he has” – Luis Enrique claims Spain star can ‘define an era’ after impressive FIFA World Cup debut

Spain manager Luis Enrique has heaped praise on Gavi ahead of their 2022 FIFA World Cup encounter against Germany on November 27.

The Barcelona midfielder made his World Cup debut for La Roja on November 23 in his team's 7-0 rout of Costa Rica. The 18-year-old showed an incredible level of maturity to command his team's midfield and played a role in two of Spain's goals.

His pass, albeit deflected, led to Dani Olmo's goal, which opened the 2010 FIFA World Cup winners' account against Costa Rica. He then got on the scoresheet himself, scoring a brilliant volley in the 74th minute to make it 5-0 on the night.

Speaking at a press conference on Saturday (November 26), Enrique waxed lyrical about the Spanish teenager and said [h/t ESPN]:

"The most surprising thing for everyone is that someone, at 18 years and 100 days old, has that amount of self-confidence. "

He added:

"You have to look at the intelligence he has in his positioning, how he dominates the technical aspects of football, and his physical capacity despite being 18. We have to stay calm, he's 18, but he can define an era."

Gavi won the Kopa Trophy last month and is a regular starter for one of the biggest teams in world football, Barcelona. He has scored assisted once in 19 club games across competitions this campaign.

He is expected to partner Barce teammates Sergio Busquets and Pedri once again when Spain take on Die Mannschaft. A win would confirm the former's spot in the last 16 of the tournament with a game to spare.

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Spain boss wary of Germany threat despite their FIFA World Cup shock against Japan

Japan pulled off one of the greatest upsets in World Cup history when they sunk Germany by a 2-1 scoreline in their group-stage opener on November 23.

This puts manager Hansi Flick's World Cup hopes on the thinnest of ropes. A loss against the Spaniards could confirm their elimination from the competition if Japan secure a point against Costa Rica.

However, Enrique is wary of the threat that the four-time World Cup winners pose. He recalled the time he represented Spain against the Germans at the 1994 World Cup.

He stated via the aforementioned source:

"You look at their shirt and see four stars [for four World Cup wins]. I played against them [at the World Cup] in 1994 and their physical level was incredible... If anyone knows how to compete, it's Germany. Their history is there and they have world-class players."

Spain and Germany played out a 1-1 draw in a group fixture during the 1994 edition and both teams qualified for the knockout stages.