When reigning Euro champions and title favourites Spain get down to business against minnows Cape Verde later this evening, just ponder over the shirt number of Lamine Yamal if he takes the field. The prodigious 18-year-old, arguably the biggest name in this side despite the presence of several Barcelona seniors, does not wear the No.10 in national colours despite slipping into it comfortably for his Catalan club.

The romance of the No.10 shirt in a World Cup, historically speaking, need not be over emphasised—just think of Pele, Diego Maradona, Zinedine Zidane and Lionel Messi. It’s reserved for the most creative player on any side, be it the attacking midfielder or striker and serve up the brand value of a player even though someone like a Cristiano Ronaldo has elevated the No.7 to a different level altogether.

Lamine, whom Barcelona has bestowed the legacy of Messi with the No.10 shirt after briefly experimenting with Ansu Fati, will be wearing No.19 in the US with the prized number going to Dani Olmo. A report in The Athletic says  there is a thumb rule in Spanish national team which decides on the jersey number: seniority. Their philosophy dictates that players with the most caps choose first among the available shirt numbers.

FIFA World Cup: Lamine Yamal, the boy who could be king in the Americas

Hence, Yamal—who has made 25 appearances for the national team since his debut in 2023, had to settle for a different number and the prized number stays with Olmo, who has 50 caps and and has been wearing the No 10 on his shirt even before Yamal broke into the team. Not having that shirt has not affected Yamal’s progress with the national team one bit though.

The move is also significant as there is a commercial element to the shirt number—as having Yamal with No.10 on his back may have meant higher shirt sales for Spain but their current manager Luis de la Fuente seems to be a firm believer in the team-first ethos. Respect between teammates, and especially towards senior players, is a key mantra for national manager Luis de la Fuente and the culture on which he has built his Spain side.

There was no way of disregarding Yamal’s credentials as he dazzled in the No.10 shirt for Barcelona after Ansu Fati, another much hyped young talent, was given the legacy of Messi. Fati, one of the brightest talents to emerge from Barca’s La Masia academy in recent years, failed after he inherited the No 10 from Messi—with multiple injuries not helping his case. However, Yamal has been a different story ever since he took over Fati’s No 10 last summer—scoring 24 goals and providing 17 assists in 45 games.

Luis de la Fuente, Spain managerI want there to be plenty of Spanish players capable of meeting the standards required of a national team to compete in a World Cup. Whether that’s Real, Barca, Sevilla or whatever...

The ground rules laid down by Fuente had been nothing short of extraordinary as he took a courageous call of not having a single Real Madrid player on Spain’s World Cup roster for the first time in history. The reason put across was irrefutable: there were not enough Spanish players in the Los Blancos ranks to choose from (only seven in the entire squad) and the heavyweights finished with no major trophy for the second year running.

 The absence of a single Real player came up again in their arrival in the US. Fuente, however, was unfazed: ‘’Honestly, I don’t attach any importance to the fact [not having a Real Madrid player]. ’I want there to be plenty of Spanish players capable of meeting the standards required of a national team to compete in a World Cup. Whether that’s Real, Barca, Sevilla or whatever,’’ he added.