Spanish star speaks of happiness and ambition after debut goal

Spain‘s 1-1 draw with the Netherlands on Wednesday evening was significant for two reasons. Sergio Ramos moved level with Italy’s Gianluigi Buffon to become the European player with the most international appearances for his country and Sergio Canales scored his first goal for Spain on his sixth senior cap.

Canales was quick to speak of his team’s ambition moving forward after the game, however, saying that “the draw was a shame” because “the team had the mentality and the will [to win the game].”

Canales has been one of the best players so far in this LaLiga season, operating with guile and creativity in a number of positions within the Real Betis midfield. The Cantabrian seems to have developed a new lease of life under experienced Chilean coach Manuel Pellegrini, who took over at the Seville club during the off-season. Canales joined Betis back in 2018.

“I’m happy to help the team [by scoring the goal],” Canales told Teledeporte in quotes carried by Diario de Sevilla. “The draw was a shame because the team had the mentality and the desire [to win]. After my goal the victory would have been something magnificent, but the Netherlands are a very strong rival.

“In the first half we played well going forward and controlled the game, although they had more of the ball. We were comfortable, especially with the spaces behind their defence. In the second half they came out strong but we recovered and created several chances. It was a very close match.”

Next up for La Roja are clashes against Switzerland and Germany in the Nations League. Spain are currently top of League A Group 4, a point clear of second-placed Germany and five clear of bottom-placed Switzerland. “The ambition of the team is enormous and we’re looking forward to Saturday,” Canales continued. “We have two finals now and we’ll go out to win both. It’s our obligation.”

Featured image courtesy of Pledge Times.

Tags La Roja Real Betis Sergio Canales Sergio Ramos
La Liga - Club News