2010 World Cup winner Joan Capdevila has revealed the secret ritual that he taught Marc Cucurella to help Spain win their second star as they defeated Argentina on Sunday afternoon.
Capdevila had previously had to beg US president Donald Trump to see if he might be able to help him secure an ESTA visa to help him watch Spain attempt to secure the World Cup.
After successfully securing legal passage to New York to watch the final, Capdevila could then reveal from the stands an important instruction he had shared with the national team ahead of their meeting with Lionel Scaloni’s side.
‘In 2010, I buried a coin in the grass before starting the match… I’ve told it millions of times,’ Capdevila shared on social media site X. ‘I asked (Cucurella) to do the same yesterday…
‘Marc, I love you so much. YOU ARE A WORLD CHAMPION!’
Capdevila shared a video of Cucurella appearing to follow his lead, trotting across the turf during the warm-up and checking to see if anyone is watching him.
When the coast is clear, Cucurella bends down and takes the coin out of his sock and appears to dig it into the pitch, before speeding off to rejoin his team-mates.
Marc Cucurella appeared to follow advice given to him by ex-Spain defender Joan Capdevila
The Real Madrid star raised the World Cup trophy on Sunday as one of the tournament’s stars
Now 48, Capdevila started all seven games for then-Spanish coach Vicente del Bosque’s historic team in 2010.
Remarkably, the former Villarreal star was the only member of Spain’s starting lineup for the final who wasn’t a member of Real Madrid or Barcelona.
Capdevila had previously shared a message for US Customs and Border Protection, Trump, and Spain’s ministry of education, vocational training and sports.
‘I NEED HELP @realDonaldTrump,’ read Capdevila’s social media post. ‘They just told me that I can’t travel to the final with my kids because my ESTA [Electronic System for Travel Authorization] has been denied.
‘Can anyone help me with this?’ he asked his followers. ‘You have no idea how excited I was to be there with all my 2010 teammates and this team to cheer them on.
‘I can’t believe they’re not letting me into the USA… and that I’ll miss a moment like this with my kids who love soccer so much.’
He also pleaded his case to Spanish radio station, COPE, sharing his belief that his ban stemmed from a 2016 match he played in Iran alongside other La Liga legends.
The State Department does issue visa waivers through its ESTA program, which does not permit travel to the US to anyone who has travelled to Iran since March 1, 2011. Anyone who has travelled to Iran since then ‘must obtain a visa prior to traveling to the United States.’
After arriving at the MetLife Stadium, Capdevila shared a jubilant post telling his fans: ‘NEVER GIVE UP IF YOU WANT SOMETHING, LET’S GO SPAIN! (Spanish flag emoji)’.
Capdevila travelled with his children, who were able to watch Luis de la Fuente’s players make history with victory over Lionel Messi and Co.
Spain were forced to toil against a negative Argentina team who registered just two shots over the full 120 minutes, with Ferran Torres eventually grabbing the winning goal in the second-half of extra time.
Capdevila – who won the World Cup with Spain in 2010 – had previously been unable to secure a visa to watch the match
Cucurella – who inked a £60million move from Chelsea to Real Madrid on the eve of the tournament – was one of the standout players during Spain’s campaign and admitted that he was looking forward to celebrating the historic win in some style.
Ahead of Sunday’s final, Cucurella suggested that he might get his manager’s face tattooed on him if Spain were to raise the trophy.
‘I don’t know (where I will get it tattooed),’ he replied when asked about the idea after the final whistle. ‘I haven’t decided yet.
‘I need to think about it, I need to think about where to get it. People will ask me about it too, so it has to be somewhere visible.
‘But anyway, we’ve got a long journey ahead of us now. I hope people will give me some ideas. I’ll think it over and then it will be time to get it done.’
Cucurella was also embroiled in some late controversy after Lionel Messi appeared to attempt to get the left back sent off after Argentina went down to 10 men.
As Enzo Fernandez, who received a second yellow card for a headless challenge on Pau Cubarsi, was making his way off the field, Cucurella appeared to touch his mouth as he spoke to Messi.
Messi quickly alerted the referee and attempted to see Cucurella sanctioned under FIFA’s new rules which forbid players from covering their mouth during disputes.
As Cucurella was quickly deemed not to be speaking in anger, Messi’s protests were soon waved away by both the referee and VAR.
