Aymeric Laporte’s seventh very comes out in capital letters. “I am very, very, very, very, very, very, VERY happy at everything I’ve given Spain since I arrived,” he says. “I couldn’t be prouder of what I’ve done.” He made his international debut only in June 2021 but has played 34 games, 32 as a starter, and been at three major tournaments. There have been two Nations League finals, his country’s first trophy in 11 years, and a European Championship semi-final at Wembley. Now, sitting in Donaueschingen, bloodstain on his top, he is about to leave for Berlin for the final of Euro 2024, arguably the tournament’s best defender.
Of course he’s proud: that goes without saying, or it should. Sometimes, though, it seems Laporte needs to say it. A lot of the time, in fact. If there is a player who has shut most mouths here, he feels, it is him. “I’ve suffered a lot of criticism, not just this season but every season,” he says. “There have been debates – I don’t always please everyone – but I’ve worked the same way as always, the same as when we won the Nations League. Since I’ve been playing for the national team, there have been very few games I’ve played badly, that have given people reasons to doubt me. But a Euros is bigger, more visible, and it has been good for me.”
Now maybe he can win them over; it has taken a little longer than it might have. Coming into these Euros, there were question marks, reasons to be unsure. There was also something else, and he is a footballer aware of and not exactly enamoured of what sometimes goes with the game; prepared to say so too. In part, perhaps, underlying some of the doubts is prejudice. Laporte was born in Agen, Nouvelle-Aquitaine. He played for France at Under-17, Under-18, Under-19 and Under-21 level, and was called up to the senior side three times but didn’t play – he sat on the bench against Spain – before getting his Spanish passport in May 2021 and making his debut with the selección the following month.
“I feel that [prejudice], and it’s understandable that when someone changes nationality there’s more or less acceptance from certain people,” he says. “But I also understand that if I’m doing everything to defend that country, it’s paying off and I’m playing well, then … it’s not like I’ve come and made a right mess of everything, caused problems. If I had, it would be even more understandable. I try to defend Spain to the absolute maximum all the time, to be exemplary, so [the doubts] can irritate a bit. I do think there’s that small rejection, and it’s the same questions: Do you feel this? Do you feel that? You haven’t played … I don’t know if it’s looking for the easy headline. Maybe it’s easier to go for you than someone else.”
The last of those lines – you haven’t played – is a little different, even though those doubts can also now be dismissed. If Laporte feels there was too much willingness to go for him – there was a moment at the start of the tournament when he publicly asked what he had done to deserve this – there were also genuine reasons to wonder about his role. He had missed the final international break before the Euros squad was announced after he cut his foot, since August 2023 he has been playing for Al-Nassr in Saudi Arabia – a competition he had been critical of himself – and as the Euros began he wasn’t quite ready. He was left out of the opening game against Croatia, and Luis de la Fuente was accused of bringing an injured player from a lesser league. Laporte had spoken to the coach before moving there.
“It’s still football, there’s a ball, you have to chase it,” Laporte says. “And you have a lot of kilometres to cover there too, so it’s no problem. I understand that they can have questions, doubts, an unease about the league, but to have doubts about someone’s level when they come back to Europe is different.
“I don’t say the Saudi league is better than the Spanish league – I’m not saying that. What I am saying is that I’m ready to compete in this competition. Because of the hours of training. If after a game I see that I need something more, I’m going to do that to be at my best level. I did extras at all times to get here in the best condition. Beyond my club, beyond everything. I always prepare to compete, especially in these competitions. To the maximum. You have to be in optimum condition always. Playing there or anywhere else, I would have done exactly the same.
“If I remember rightly, [De la Fuente, and I] spoke at the time of the final get-together when I didn’t go because I had cut my foot. But he didn’t say anything to me after that about the final squad until the list was announced.
“But you know what? I’ve been playing almost 12 years in the first division[s] and people know what I’m capable of. You don’t need to follow me daily to know how Aymeric Laporte is going to play, how committed he is going to be to the team, how he is going to perform. It is obvious that if I came it is because I can, because I am in good condition. If not, I would be the first to say: ‘Sorry, I don’t think I am at the level.’ But that’s not the case.”
In Spain’s second game against Italy, Laporte played 90 minutes and was superb. He has not missed a minute of the knockout phase. Defensively solid, he has also been vital with the ball, striding out from the back. More so than before.
“Well, maybe it was a different coach asking for different things,” he says. “Now, we have Luis de la Fuente and he gives me that confidence to do things we weren’t used to doing, to do what I can do. The trust he has in us is complete; whether we do well or badly, we’re always together.”
Is this less structured, more free than previously? “If you compare it to the last coach, it could be,” Laporta says. “He gives us lots of freedom, tranquillity. He knows us, how we can play. And at no point have we not been ourselves. The national team is where I feel the most comfortable, because of the companionship, the trust from the manager, the way we play, the way we understand football. When you feel that collaboration, that people are close, it’s good for everyone.”
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It’s working, that’s for sure. “We have had the bad side of the tournament, so to speak. We had all the big teams, or lots of them. In the group phase: Italy, the previous champions; Croatia, who have players like Modric, Brozovic, etc, etc. Georgia, then Germany, France, two of the favourites. And we made it to the final, playing well.”
Is it better that way, more fun to face the biggest sides? “At a Euros or a World Cup, you always enjoy it if you win, whoever you play,” Laporte says. “Ask England who reached the final – and they deserve it – but they have played against theoretically smaller teams and they will be extremely happy too.
“I’ve been watching England because I have ex-teammates of mine there. We exchange messages once in a while. What surprises me is how good they are individually and how we’ve seen less of that here. Against Slovakia, they score in the 94th minute. All the players they have, even the subs, and they weren’t able to show football of a great level. They didn’t overrun Slovakia, didn’t create as much football as I perceive them to be individually.”
Why? “I don’t know. I feel like either they have their day or they don’t. When you see [Phil] Foden, what he does always at his club and in the national team, when you see [Bukayo] Saka, [Harry] Kane … these are players who are very hard to defend.”
And yet, if you were putting together your team of the tournament, there could be seven or eight from Spain and there might be none from England. “I haven’t done one, haven’t even thought about it,” Laporte says. “In terms of names, I am sure that I would put loads in. But in terms of the competition, it’s true that there isn’t one that really stands out for me as an inclusion from England. Yet we can’t relax.
“I always want to play against the best to put myself to the test. In the end it is about competing. If you compete against the best, you’re among the best. And that’s always my objective. Kane is not the typical forward who runs in behind you and does you a lot of damage on the move, but you see the way he protects the ball, how effective he is.
“He’s strong, good in the air, very dangerous. In the area, he strikes the ball spectacularly well. We’ll have to see if we can do everything to stop him, to ensure he doesn’t get any chances. And if we play our football I think we have a great chance. I couldn’t be prouder of what I’ve done here, and if we can finish it off with the trophy then so much the better.”