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MADRID: Luis de la Fuente insisted on Saturday Spain did not have a racism problem ahead of his team\u2019s Nations League showdown with England despite an upcoming stadium punishment for anti-Muslim chanting earlier this year.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters a day after England coach Thomas Tuchel said he would speak to his players about the anti-racism protocol in place before Sunday\u2019s match in Madrid, De la Fuente said there is \u201cno racism\u201d in Spain.<\/p>\n
England players faced racist abuse during a game in the Spanish capital in 2004, while La Roja will have to play their next home friendly with a reduced capacity as a punishment for supporters singing a discriminatory chant about Muslims during a fixture against Egypt in March.<\/p>\n
Numerous other incidents of racist abuse at Spanish football matches \u2014 most notably those targeting Real Madrid forward Vinicius Junior \u2014 have occurred in Spain in recent years.<\/p>\n
Tuchel said on Friday: \u201cI think the referee and the officials know about that (racist chanting)… There is a protocol in place and it\u2019s important that the players know about the protocol.\u201d<\/p>\n
He later clarified his comments as not being specifically about Spain and criticized reporters for creating \u201ca lot of confusion for absolutely nothing.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cI never talked about racism in Spain. I answered politely a question about what happens,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
De la Fuente added he was not sure whether star attacker Lamine Yamal, who missed Spain\u2019s win over the Czech Republic on Thursday with a knee problem, would start the match.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ll see if he starts, but if he plays, it will be because he is fit to do so. I\u2019m not sure if he can manage a full 90 minutes, but he is in perfect shape,\u201d said De la Fuente.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n