Aitana Bonmatí, on the Rubiales case: "I am surprised that coercion has not been penalized"

Spanish international Aitana Bonmatí has ​​said that she is "surprised" that "obvious coercion has not been penalized" in the case of the kiss between former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) Luis Rubiales and player Jenni Hermoso.

«Everyone here knows everything that has happened in these years, these months. For me, the sentence has set a precedent for this type of situation, for sexual assault. It is positive, I think that is the feeling of the whole team, Irene Paredes said it the other day. Personally, I am surprised that coercion, which was evident, has not been penalized as well. From here, we have to respect justice, but I would like to say that the process has served some purpose. We are all happy here, because, in addition to continuing to do things well on the field, we have supported our teammate and we have fought so that these things are not in vain,» declared the player in a press conference.

She also hopes that the sentence will lead to changes in Spanish and global society. "I hope that this case will lead to changes in our country, in our football, to respect us better as footballers, but it is also a global case. I don't want to talk only about footballers, I think this happens in other jobs. I hope that this case will help anyone who is going through these things and that this will help to respect women more," she said.

On the sporting front, with a Nations League match against England, the Blaugrana predicted that it will be a close game and underlined the appeal of the clash: "They beat us in the Euros, we beat them in the World Cup. As Sarina Wiegman, the England coach, says, they are going to try to attack the spaces behind us. We are a team that likes to have the ball, obviously we are always going to have spaces behind us. And yes, we have to correct these errors. Sometimes it is a loss in the final third, it is not the fault of the defence, it is the fault of the whole team."

"The other day, the second goal - against Belgium - came from a loss in their area and they ended up conceding a goal. It's about how we are prepared to defend when we have the ball. We must not only be prepared to attack, but always think about the worst, think about a possible loss, and be prepared to counteract this," she added.

She also knows that the English will be keen to get revenge after losing in the final of the last World Cup against the Spanish. “I am aware of the great match that is coming up tomorrow and also of the desire that England will have to beat us. Losing a World Cup final is painful, so I would also be keen to get revenge. Tomorrow could be a great opportunity for them, but for us it is also an opportunity to continue leading, reigning and showing that we are still a champion team. After the Games we were left with a thorn in our side, we left without any medals. We are ambitious players, it hurt us, but now we have the Nations League, the Euro, and we want to continue being a champion team,” she said. “They feel comfortable in counterattacks, they know our weaknesses and they will try to take advantage of them. We have analysed what penalised us on the day against Belgium. We must know how to defend when we are attacking, be positioned for the possible loss and not let a goal in,” continued the Catalan.

On her defeat against the English at Euro 2022, she recalled that it was “a very painful day”. “Above all because of how the game went for us. I think it was unfair because of what we had seen on the pitch. They ended up being European champions and had a great tournament. Then we were world champions. I think that since that day a lot of things have happened, both on and off the pitch, it has been a tough few years, but as a team we have been united, we have not lowered our level, and that says a lot about who we are, about knowing how to be in those tough moments too, and knowing how to continue growing in the face of the adversities that have happened to us,” she warned.

«The team has improved a lot. We had no experience in tournaments of this type, and yet we went to the World Cup and won it. Then came the Nations League, which we won as well, and then came the Olympics. You can't always be at the top, but the path has always been increasing. At the Euro we saw the level of the national teams, we saw where we wanted to be, and each one put on the work clothes in their clubs. The path has been the right one, and we continue to grow, because we are not perfect. The ambition remains intact and that is a characteristic of our team,» he continued.

«We create a lot and sometimes we find it difficult to get ahead. We are a happy team, that attacks, that likes to have the ball, that likes to play in the opponent's half; normally we have a lot of space behind us and we have to be careful, especially in defensive transitions. Nowadays any team can hurt you behind us. We already saw Belgium the other day, which by name may be a lesser team but for me it is not.» In this sense, she stressed that they have «a unique model and that is not going to change.» «We are a team that wants to play with the ball, over the years we have improved a lot physically. We have more and more players that can help us, especially in that last third of the field, to attack behind us, which we lacked more before; we train with players, not only the forwards or wingers, but also the inside players, how we break into the spaces that the opposing team leaves behind us, we are adapting to being a more vertical team when necessary, something that was impossible before. We have a more versatile team,» she stressed.

On her physical condition, the Catalan assured that it is “optimal”. “I am very well. I know that it is a matter of some concern, but if I look at the minutes of this season compared to the others, they are very similar. It is true that I have been going through many seasons in a row with little rest, but I feel very good. I am a professional player, I try to be available in all the games and if I am needed, I will be there,” she said.

She also expressed her excitement at being able to play at Wembley. "It's a legendary, historic stadium, I'm really looking forward to it, I've never played here before. It's going to be a great match, one that I'm really looking forward to, one of those that you like, one of those that you enjoy, one that you think about the nights before. I hope there are a lot of people there to enjoy this great match," she said.

Finally, Bonmatí hoped that stadiums in Spain could be filled like those in England. “I would like to play in a full stadium in Spain. We have to work in that direction. England is a clear example, both for how they treat the product on and off the pitch, for how they gather so many people to fill the stadiums in the national team and in the League. I think they took advantage of the moment after their Euro to develop women's football and they truly believed in it. It is an example to look up to,” she concluded.