A dozen years ago Spain reigned supreme in world football, winning the World Cup in 2010 and two successive European championships either side of it. Then they declined. Their “tiki-taka” passing game congealed into dull possession of the ball for the sake of it. Now under a new coach, Luis de la Fuente, a new generation of players have added greater attacking threat. They look like a team who have enjoyed playing with each other since they were kids—as many of them have. Not by chance, Mr de la Fuente managed his country’s junior teams from 2013 until 2022, winning the European under-19 championship in 2015 and the under-21 title in 2019 with some of the same players now in the senior squad.