Iker Bravo (19, San Cugat del Vallés) is the great novelty of the call for Saint Dénia in the Spanish under-21 team to replace the promotion of Samu Omorodion. The Spanish striker is doing things very well at Udinese and deserves to be here after being MVP of the last European Championship with the Under-19 team. Iker had a tough time at the youth academy Real Madrid, but now he feels that he is happy and that things are going very well for him. The new U21 striker is busy OKDIARIO in the Soccer City of Las Rozas with a dream and a very clear goal in mind.
Question: These are your first hours as a player for the Spanish Under-21 team. What does it do?
Answer: For me it’s very special to be here with the U21 players, the staff and the truth is that I enjoy it a lot. My colleagues received me very well and I feel very comfortable and I am very happy.
Q: You arrive at this U21 camp being the best player of the last U19 European Championship. Santi Denia highlighted this during the list’s press conference. What did the coach tell you?
A.: The coach spoke to me and told me that he saw me much better. He spoke with Udinese and they praised me, that I’m very professional and he just told me to be me, enjoy it above all and appreciate it.
Q: On the horizon, there is another European Championship, that of the U21 team. Next summer, do you see yourself doing the same thing you did in the U19 team?
A: Well, there are many factors. There is still a lot of season left for the European Championship, but I will work on it. And if I work, I am capable of anything.
Q: You said in an interview that you had already told your friends and family before the U19 European Championship that you were going to be the MVP of the tournament. I would like to see if you can tell me what audios or messages you sent to your family or friends before this call for the under 21 team. Any predictions?
A: The problem with this call is that I didn’t know it was coming because I wasn’t expecting it. So when I found out I was coming here, it was a surprise. I was with my cousins playing the game and my cousin was very nervous hitting (the phone) because he had a feeling. And I told him to put his cell phone down. Make sure you play something or other. And suddenly the list comes out. And the last one, the last one of all, was me. And he says “yes, it’s there, yes, it’s there”. We started calling my loved ones and stuff, and I didn’t send any audio. During this call, I did not send any audio.
Q: And what was the first thing you thought of when you saw yourself on the U21 list?
A: A joy. As a liberation that we accomplish things. Everything is fine. After two turbulent years, let’s put it that way, I felt like a liberation that everything is okay.
Q: If all goes well, you will be able to make your debut against England at La Línea. Above very close to Gibraltar. It’s a great game. You’ve faced England many times in the youth categories. A very cool match to start with.
A: The match against England, they thought carefully about the site. Because it’s next to Gibraltar (laughs). It’s a great game. England have a very strong team, both in the senior and under-21 ranks. I think there are players who are already playing until the Champions League and the truth is that it is a big match. I don’t know if I will start or not, but if I start, I’m sure I will succeed.
Q: If he starts at Albacete, that will also be great, right?
A: Also.
Q: We need to think about the future and what’s coming. The under-21 team is very good, but we all know that Spain creates very good midfielders, they create good central defenders, but they struggle with attackers. We have two. Joselu didn’t go to the last one. We have Samu and there is Morata who, according to the law of football, we don’t know how much he has left. Do you see yourself in the 2026 World Cup?
A: I played against Morata at San Siro and I must say he is a very good player. I think in Spain either he is not valued as much, but when you see him on the pitch he does things that people don’t see, but he is a very good player. And then there is Samu, who has I don’t know how many goals, he’s having an incredible season. And then come a lot of attackers who also have a lot of level. Here, I share a position with Mateo Joseph and he also has a very good level, and there are many players who have a very good level. I hope I will be there at the World Cup. With 9, with 19 or with any number. I’m going to work for this.
Q: Let’s think positively. It would be brutal to be the Spanish striker with Lamine Yamal on one side and Nico Williams on the other, wouldn’t it?
A: For me, it would be a pleasure to play with this kind of footballers (Yamal and Nico). I’ve been watching Lamine since I was little, I’m only two years older than him. I’ve seen it since I was a child. And he has a special talent since he is seven years old and he entered the pre-benjamín class. And Nico also saw that he is a world-class star and playing alongside them, I would tell you it would even be easy.
Q: You have had a difficult two years. Morata also had a bad time. On the last call, we were talking about mental health all the time. Is Morata a reference?
A: I don’t know him personally, but I talked to him for a while after the match and when there was a foul or something like that. And for me it is a reference. Obviously, the Spanish strikers who have a good level and who play good matches, well, I always try to pay attention to them because at the end of the day, it’s my country. And the truth is that for me it is a reference.
Q: Were you mistreated in Spain?
A: Yeah.
Q: You are now in Seria A with minutes and you have a goal. How is the adventure going there?
A: Very good, very good. I am very comfortable in Udine. The town is very quiet and I think that was kind of what I needed, peace and quiet. And Serie A is a very competitive championship, very complicated, but I adapt well and I feel very comfortable.
Q: He’s only 19, but you get the feeling he’s been playing football for many years. Barcelona youth team, Bayer Leverkusen, Real Madrid and now Udinese. Do you have the same feeling?
A: Yes yes. It’s not that I feel it, because ultimately I experience it from the inside. And you gain experience at Barça, Madrid, Bayer. Now at Udinese you’re gaining experience, but it’s true that people outside think I’m much older. Because after you’ve had a long journey, quote unquote, with teams and everything, people think “but this boy is still 19.” Know? Starting so young too…”
Q: What remains of Iker who brought many journalists here to Las Rozas to watch a friendly match between Spain and Italy under the eyes of Luis de la Fuente?
A: Well, it’s a very changed Iker Bravo, with much clearer and much more mature ideas, there’s no doubt about it. But I’m still the same in terms of football. I have improved, obviously, but from the base I have the same.
Q: How are you doing as a striker?
A: Many call me an attacker, but I have always been a false attacker. Because I really like playing with the ball. But I can also play as a striker, obviously. I like to have contact with the ball, then get into the box and finish. This is the basis of a striker and I have it. I also like my colleagues to take advantage of the spaces I leave. So, I consider myself a mobile attacker.
Q: Where do you install the roof?
A: I don’t wear it.
Q: There is a coach who we imagine was very important to you. This is Alvaro Arbeloa. Now that you have reached the U21s, would you like to send him a message?
A: With the coach (about Arbeloa) there are a lot of words because he already knows everything for which I am grateful to him. But if I had to send you a message, it would be to thank you very much for opening my eyes to the world of football and for helping me mature as a person.
Q: I wanted to ask you about the defenders of La Fábrica. There is a lack of defenders in the Real Madrid first team. Do you think there is this quality among the defenders of the Madrid training center to take the plunge?
A: Yes, Joan Martínez for example. He had the misfortune that happened to him this summer. But Joan, for his age, is an excellent central defender. And he’s going to be a great player. Now Fortea is playing. It’s also very good.
