Croatia's Budimir labels Spain's Yamal as 'special talent' ahead of Euro opener

Osasuna and Croatia striker Ante Budimir gave a press conference on Wednesday to Spain's Lamine Yamal, whom he sees as a "special" talent, a type of player who is no longer common in the world of football.

Budimir, who has scored 18 goals this season, arrives with sky-high confidence and is tipped to be the first-choice striker for Croatia. His first opponent will be Spain, a team he already knows and in which he plays a differential player like Yamal.

"It's very special, it's complicated the difference at that level in those years. He makes decisions as if he were much older. There are not many players in history who have achieved something like that and the call-up to the national team confirms it. What can I say, except that he's a great danger," he said from Neurupinn, near Berlin, shortly before training. 

The striker knows many of his upcoming opponents well: "The truth is that we have met many times and we know each other well. It's better for me to know them well, because I think it benefits us as a team and that's my advantage.

On Luis de la Fuente's team, he said: "We played them a year ago and at the last European Championship. You know what kind of football the Spanish play, they like possession and lulling the opposition to sleep. They can be very quick and direct at all times. As a team, they are nice to watch and easy to enjoy."

"They are a very good team, Rodri is very important for them. They have a lot of young players who make the difference. A very talented and dangerous team," he added.