Spain coach Luis de la Fuente says his team must have a "win, win, win" approach and leave nothing to chance after being drawn with Cape Verde, Saudi Arabia and Uruguay in the group stages of the 2026 World Cup.
The Euro 2024 champions will take on tournament first-timers Cape Verde in their World Cup opener before squaring off against Saudi Arabia, the only country to beat Argentina at the last World Cup.
The last game against the always dangerous Uruguay, who are led by former Leeds coach Marcelo Bielsa, could determine first place in the group.
"We have to win, win, and win," De la Fuente said after the draw. "It's the only thing we can control since we have a huge responsibility. We have to take it one game at a time and focus on ourselves.
"We must be respectful because every match will be difficult. They are complex, each team with their own peculiarities. The first thing is to get through the group stage, which isn't easy, but we want to go as far as possible."
De la Fuente knows that if Spain and defending champions Argentina finish top of their groups, they would not face each other until the final.
"I just ran into (Argentina coach Lionel) Scaloni and we said that if either of us stumbles, we might cross paths (before the final)," he said.