Spain forward Mikel Oyarzabal said his teammates never lost faith in their abilities and they have proved their mettle by advancing to the Euro 2020 semi-finals.
After a disrupted build-up that saw the squad forced into isolation following captain Sergio Busquets' positive coronavirus test, Spain began with uninspiring draws against Sweden and Poland, drawing plenty of criticism. However, Luis Enrique's side hit their stride when it mattered most, claiming a 5-0 win over Slovakia in the final group game before a 5-3 extra-time victory against World Cup finalists Croatia.
Criticism subsided further after their penalty shootout win against Switzerland in the quarter-finals and Spain now face a blockbuster semi-final clash against old rivals Italy at Wembley on Tuesday.
"From the first day we were confident that we were a solid group, a united group and that we were good enough and we've proved that," Oyarzabal said.
"People are free to say what they like, that's part of football but we never had any doubts at any moment, we always believed in ourselves and we trust in ourselves for what is to come."
Spain are meeting Italy for the fourth European Championships in a row, beating them on penalties in the Euro 2008 quarter-finals, prevailing 4-0 in the Euro 2012 final and then losing 2-0 at Euro 2016.
Italy have been on top form in the tournament and overcame Belgium to reach the last four, but Oyarzabal said his side remains confident.
"They're a top level team with players who keep performing at the highest level with their clubs but we're not any less than them," he said.
"We have to keep having full confidence in ourselves, the way we play and the ideas we have and focus on producing a big performance regardless of who we're playing."
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SWITZERLAND RATINGS V SPAIN: Yann Sommer - 8, Showed plenty of authority whenever the ball came into his box and made an incredible save to deny Gerard Moreno. Had no chance of stopping Spain’s goal but made a great save to deny Rodri in the penalty shootout. -
Nico Elvedi - 7, Put in a whole-hearted display, doing especially well to deal with the crosses coming into his box, throwing any necessary body part at the ball. Got away with giving the ball away cheaply at the very end. -
Manuel Akanji - 7, Looked weak in his defending a couple of times in the first half but was indomitable in the second period and extra time, making some brilliant last-ditch tackles and blocks. Looked a threat in the opposition box but saw his penalty saved in the shootout. -
Ricardo Rodriguez - 8, Dealt with the attacking threats from out wide well and caused the occasional threat going forward. Made a superb block to deny Marcos Llorente with 10 minutes of extra time left. -
Silvan Widmer - 7, Struggled to stop crosses going into the box in the first half and didn’t offer much when he went forward. However, he showed persistence in the second period but was booked for a foul on Sergio Busquets and brought off after a risky but necessary tackle. -
Denis Zakaria - 5, Having come into the team for the suspended Granit Xhaka, he deflected the ball into his own net for the opener. It seemed to take him a while to recover, but he came inches away from atoning with a header. -
Remo Freuler - 5, Worked hard to do the difficult job of trying to keep up with the Spanish midfield. Got his reward for that hard work when he assisted Xherdan Shaqiri. However, he was then sent off for a challenge on Gerard Moreno. -
Steven Zuber - 6, He’s been a great creative presence in previous games, but there were only glimpses of that quality in this game, even if one of them almost saw him catch Unai Simon out. -
Xherdan Shaqiri - 7, Wasn’t decisive enough when an early chance arose then waited too long when trying to play Zuber in. However, he was the man who got Switzerland back on level terms with a well-taken goal. -
Breel Embolo - 6, Worked hard and made a nuisance of himself when possible but went down with a hamstring injury in the 20th minute. -
Haris Seferovic - 6, Had a very quiet game, as he was marshalled well by the Spanish defence and barely got a touch. Did well to block Ferran Torres’ acrobatic effort. -
SUBS: Ruben Vargas (Embolo 23’) - 5, Showed good energy and created the chance that Zuber almost scored from. Blazed his penalty over the crossbar in the shootout. -
SUB Djibril Sow (Shaqiri 81’) – 6, Showed plenty of commitment and did well to get his side up the pitch, while he also contributed defensively. -
Mario Gavranovic (Seferovic 82’) – 6, Struggled to make any impact as he was left fairly isolated. Booked for kicking the ball away, which meant he would have missed the semi-final had they got there, but he had the strength of mind to convert his penalty. -
Christian Fassnacht (Zuber 92’) – 6, Put in a resolute performance and helped his team out defensively. -
SUB Kevin Mbabu (Wilmer 101’) – N/R, Got up and down the pitch well but didn’t show much quality on the ball. -
Fabian Schar (Zakaria 101’) – N/R, Did a good job of stepping out to engage the Spanish midfielders when Switzerland were under pressure. Made a good block in the 115th minute to keep his side in the game. Had his penalty saved. -
SPAIN RATINGS: Unai Simon - 8, Made a complete mess of a clearance but made a good reaction save to deny Zuber. Had no chance of stopping Shaqiri’s goal. Did a great job to outsmart Schar and Akanji in the penalty shootout, while his sidestepping across the line seemed to put Vargas off. -
Cesar Azpilicueta - 7, Had a good header saved by Sommer and defended well throughout the game. Played a great ball across the Swiss box that deserved a finish. -
Aymeric Laporte - 5, Looked authoritative for large periods of the game but got involved in a mix up with Pau Torres to gift Switzerland their equaliser. Booked for a foul on Gavranovic. -
Pau Torres - 4, Some of his passing was off and he got in the way to gift Freuler the ball, which he used to set up Shaqiri. Could have done better when a chance came to him in the box. -
Jordi Alba - 8, The left-back’s strike led to Spain’s goal. He was also busy and looked to make an impact with the ball while also holding his own defensively. Tested Sommer with an effort from outside the box. -
Koke - 6, Moved the ball well and worked hard but seemingly ran out of ideas after Switzerland’s equaliser. -
Sergio Busquets - 5, Kept the game ticking over nicely with his passing before Switzerland’s goal. Had a couple of uncharacteristically poor touches towards the end, had a late header saved by Sommer then hit the post with his penalty. -
Pedri - 7, Linked the play beautifully at times and his intelligence helped to create opportunities – even if they weren’t taken. -
Ferran Torres - 7, Put some lovely crosses into the box and it usually looked like something would happen when he had the ball. -
Alvaro Morata - 6, Linked the play and held the ball up well, but never looked like causing Switzerland many problems in and around the box. -
Pablo Sarabia - 6, Showed good quality with his ball distribution but there were times where he drifted out of the game a little bit. -
SUBS: Dani Olmo (Sarabia HT) - 6, Showed good feet and trickery to create space. Had one shot deflected narrowly wide and sent another into Sommer’s arms. Convincingly converted his penalty. -
Gerard Moreno (Morata 54’) - 5, Wasted a decent chance towards the end of the 90 minutes, missed an absolute sitter in extra time and then got his shoulder on a ball instead of his head. He did score his penalty in the shootout, though. -
Marcos Llorente (Koke 91’) – 6, Made some brilliant runs and stretched the Swiss defence at every opportunity. -
Mikel Oyarzabal (F. Torres FT’) – 7, Had two good shots saved by Sommer having almost created a goal for Moreno. Scored the penalty that won the shootout for Spain. -
Thiago Alcantara (P. Torres 113’) – N/R, Saw plenty of the ball and moved it around quickly. -
Rodri (Pedri 119’) – N/R, Couldn’t get high enough to convert the headed chance that came his way and had his penalty saved.
Meanwhile, Italy defender Leonardo Spinazzola has been ruled out of action "for a few months" after suffering a serious injury in their quarter-final win over Belgium, his club AS Roma's new manager Jose Mourinho said.
Italian media reported that full back Spinazzola, who had been one of the standout performers of Euro 2020, sustained a suspected ruptured Achilles tendon injury in their 2-1 win in Munich.
Spinazzola, 28, was pictured in tears on a stretcher as he left the field to be replaced by Emerson Palmieri, who is set to take his spot for Tuesday's semi-final.
