Pedri says Spain's current group should stay out of the 2010 comparison until it wins a World Cup. The Barcelona and Spain midfielder made that point while preparing to start his second Mundial on Monday against Cabo Verde, a match that puts the burden of proof on the team rather than on reputation.
"Hasta que no ganemos un Mundial, como hicieron ellos, será muy complicado comparar." That line draws a hard boundary around the debate. Spain can talk about talent, continuity and style, but Pedri is tying the comparison to the one trophy that settles it.
Pedri And The Deeper Role
His current comfort point is farther from goal. "me siento mejor atrás ahora mismo," he said, adding that he can still play further forward, but that he feels better playing deeper now. De la Fuente has moved him in that direction after seeing him do it at Barcelona for the last two years.
That shift matters because it changes the way he sees the game. Pedri can still arrive higher up the pitch, but he now reads the field from a position that gives him more control over the build-up and more time on the ball. For Spain, that gives De la Fuente a midfielder who can fit either role without forcing the same answer every match.
Spain's Midfield Standard
Pedri said the difference between Rodri and Zubimendi is positional: they stay more in the middle of the field. He also pointed to the way Spanish football keeps the ball, saying that style produces many midfielders. That is the same environment that shaped the generation he grew up watching, with Xavi, Iniesta and Busi setting the reference point.
He is not speaking as a newcomer trying to borrow status. Pedri is 23 years old, has already played two Eurocopas, and won one of them. He also said he debuted five or six years ago, which gives his view weight inside a squad that is still trying to define itself against the earlier standard.
Pedri's Own Version
The change is not only tactical. "Al principio era más tímido, más vergonzoso," he said. "Ahora me he soltado muchísimo más. Soy más yo. Más vacilón." He also said he does not usually give speeches in the locker room before games, which fits the same picture: a player who leads more through play and position than through volume.
That combination leaves Spain with a useful but unfinished answer. Pedri can play higher or deeper, and De la Fuente has already used the deeper version. But the comparison with the 2010 generation stays on hold until the Mundial is won, and Monday's opening against Cabo Verde is the first step toward deciding whether this group can move beyond talk and into the same category.
