A week before traveling to Kazan, the water polo girls shared a stay in Madrid with the United States in which they played two closed-door friendly matches. Beyond the results - both teams experimented - sparks flew both in and out of the pool during one of those matches. Miki Oca did not hold back, a calm man but with an iron fist when the ball starts moving. This afternoon (16:30, Teledeporte), by the destiny of the competition, both teams will face each other again in the anticipated final of the World Championships in Kazan. However, unfortunately, there are no medals at stake yet and one of the two favorites will be left out of the fight.
Victory comes from defense and teamwork, values that Oca has instilled in the group, in a natural way, as analyzed by captain Jennifer Pareja: "There are no egos. The key was the first year with Miki on the bench. The roles were identical for everyone. There are no hierarchies here. Everyone is the same. We realized that what works is the team. Six years ago, I focused on goals, on personal action, but I have forgotten all that. I don't look at my statistics. You learn that with age, but the strong point is that the young players are like this, we all have this philosophy."
Against Canada we could see that collaborative defense that will be so important today against the American physical superiority. "We strengthen the group with defense. A few years ago, I only wanted to attack, but now I enjoy defending, blocking a ball... We have fun defending the man down. The philosophy has changed. Games are won from the back. If a team scores seven or eight goals against you, you compete, and if not, you lose. The outcome of the match against the United States will depend on that," adds the 30-year-old player.
Since Spain knocked out the USA in the quarterfinals of the Barcelona World Championships, the American team has only lost one match: against Italy in this World Championships. The Americans have improved, especially with the addition of new young players who bring more solidity to the team than in previous stages. "These matches are decided by details. They are very strong, but it's a quarterfinal and we're going for it," concludes Pareja, Oca's right-hand woman, the sorcerer of Spanish water polo.