Spain coach Julen Lopetegui has admitted that he had a touch of nerves in an interview published in the Spanish media on the day his side flew to Russia to continue their preparations for the FIFA World Cup. The Spaniards kick off their campaign on June 15 against Portugal with the country hoping for a repeat of their 2010 triumph, rather than the surprise failure in 2014 when they crashed out of the first stage of the tournament in Brazil, reports Xinhua news agency.

"You are always focused and you feel the World Cup getting closer, which gives you that slight feeling of nerves or excitement," Lopetegui said, adding that the feeling "had to exist and is good." A former goalkeeper, Lopetegui was part of the Spain squad in the 1994 World Cup as a player, and replaced Vicente del Bosque as national team coach after the 2016 European Championships.