Spain, who last won the FIFA U20 World Cup in 1999, are surging deep into the 2025 tournament in Chile with a fluid tiki-taka style of short passing that won Spain the FIFA World Cup in South Africa in 2010.
After losing to Morocco, Spain’s coach Paco Gallardo put Jan Virgili and Pablo Garcia out wide to free up space for striker Iker Bravo, who has emerged as one of the most photogenic stars in the tournament.
Bravo scored goals to tie Mexico and beat Brazil under the snow-capped Andes outside Santiago, and Garcia scored to beat Ukraine in the spectacular light of seaside Valparaiso.
Bravo, who rose through FC Barcelona’s youth academy, played in the Bundesliga for Bayer Leverkusen at age 16 and then scored two goals last year for Italian Serie A club Udinese, which signed him to a 4-year contract.
At age 20, his flashy moves and dramatic flair are grabbing the attention of a growing number of fans in Chile.
Bravo has credited Garcia, age 19, for setting him up in Chile.
“Pablo is like a brother to me,” said Bravo. “He’s one of my best friends, and that shows on the pitch. I look for him, he looks for me and it just clicks.”
Garcia, who has played with Real Betis since age 6 and is signed with them until 2029, has scored two goals in Chile with his left foot and set up other goals with bold runs and deft passes.
“I defend aggressively and win the ball back a lot in the opposition half,” Garcia said, according to FIFA’s website. “On the ball, I try to inject pace on the wing and go for close or mid-range shots. And at the end of the day, I tend to contribute to our goals.”
words and images Christopher Johnson Globalite Media all rights reserved
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