Luis de la Fuente left Dani Olmo on the bench for España’s third Group H match against Uruguay at the World Cup. Mikel Merino started in his place, and the move sharpened the midfield for a game that could decide first place in the group.
Olmo had begun the tournament with calf discomfort, did not start against Cabo Verde for that reason, and then returned to the lineup against Arabia Saudita. He also played an important role in España’s goleada in that match, which made his omission against Uruguay more striking.
Dani Olmo and Mikel Merino
De la Fuente started Unai Simón, Marcos Llorente, Cubarsí, Laporte, Cucurella, Rodri, Merino, Pedri, Lamine Yamal, Álex Baena and Oyarzabal against Uruguay. The choice pushed Merino into the midfield alongside Rodri and Pedri, while Olmo became one of the main options off the bench.
The structure gave España more physical work rate, range and presence in duels. That is the tradeoff in a match like this: less of Olmo’s interior craft from the start, more size and contest in the middle while Uruguay tried to fight for the top spot in Grupo H.
España’s midfield balance
The benching fits the timeline. Olmo missed the start against Cabo Verde because of calf discomfort, came back against Arabia Saudita, and then dropped out again for the third date of Grupo H. That sequence points to a player being managed across three straight tournament games rather than a clean, fixed first-choice selection.
For España, the practical reading is simple. If the match needed more interior play, the final pass or box arrival, Olmo remained the obvious second-half change. If De la Fuente wanted the early edge in duels and coverage, the starting XI already showed the preference.
The decision also leaves a clear split in roles. Merino got the start, Olmo stayed on the bench, and España went into a direct contest with Uruguay leaning into physical balance rather than the same attacking setup that featured Olmo against Arabia Saudita.
