Despite being just 20, Iker Bravo talks like a seasoned pro.
After coming through Barcelona’s youth ranks, he opted for pastures new and signed on the dotted line for Bayer Leverkusen. During his spell in Germany, he became the second-youngest Bundesliga debutant at 16 years and 298 days against Hertha in November 2021.
He made the switch back to Spain to join Real Madrid Castilla, but he is now in his second season with Italian outfit Udinese. He has bagged four goals in 35 appearances for Le Zebrette and has hit the ground running this season, finding the back of the net twice in just four games.
His focus is now fully on the FIFA U-20 World Cup Chile 2025™, where the bullish youngster is determined to return home with the trophy. The forward sat down with FIFA to discuss his journey so far, those days at Barcelona, turning heads in Germany and Italy and his ultimate desire to star at the senior finals.
Iker Bravo: Getting called up to the national team and representing your country is one of the biggest achievements in any footballer’s career. Whenever I get the call, whether for my debut or the last few times, it’s always a special and exciting feeling. It’s one of my biggest motivators to keep striving to win silverware.
I always try to give it my all every day, take each day as it comes, and push myself in every training session. Last year’s UEFA U-19 European Championship was a great experience for everyone involved. We emerged victorious, and now we want to replicate that success at this World Cup.
It’s a World Cup. If you come out on top, you’re a world champion, and that’s something very few people can say. Regardless of whether you get your hands on the coveted trophy at U-20 or senior level, lifting a World Cup is something every footballer dreams of. We’re chomping at the bit to get started, and we’re going to give it everything we’ve got at this World Cup.
The World Cup is constantly on my mind. It’s also a golden opportunity to showcase my footballing talent and show everyone what I’m made of in the tough group-stage matches, which is why it’s always been on my mind. I’ve worked my socks off since pre-season, keeping my focus firmly on the World Cup. I want to help Udinese whenever I can, no matter how many minutes the coach gives me, but my main goal was to make it to the World Cup in top shape to help my country as much as possible.
I’m just here to enjoy the experience, give my all to win the World Cup, and have a blast. I’m at my best when I’m enjoying myself. But most importantly, my priority is to help the team. That responsibility is mine, but we’ve got a fantastic group of people behind us and a team full of talented players. If everyone pulls their weight, we can achieve something really special, but I do carry that responsibility. I need to step up to the plate, lead the team, help out wherever I can, and spur us on to victory.
When you live abroad, you miss where you come from. It’s the little things like the country itself, the food, speaking Spanish, and being able to communicate with everyone. But that’s all part and parcel of the job. I really enjoyed my time in Germany, and now I feel at home in Italy too. But I’m not going to lie, joining up with the national team is a welcome break, because you get to be back with your people and your roots. It’s always nice.
I thoroughly enjoyed having Alexis as a team-mate last year. We spent a lot of time together during training, while eating, talking, or drinking mate, and I was able to talk to him about how he’s handled his career. He helped me a lot. He told me that Chile is a beautiful country, and from what I’ve seen so far, I really like it here. If I need anything while I’m here, I’ll drop Alexis a message for his advice.
I’m very versatile and can play in several positions – as a central striker, a second striker, or even out wide on the left. I’m a technical player with good positional awareness. I’m also a tidy finisher. I can help the team with my work rate, eye for goal, and by being the difference in the final third with my technical ability. But first and foremost, I’m a team player who does everything in my power to help the team.
Being on TikTok in Italy means I see a lot more Italian content, and I’ve watched quite a few reels of Pippo Inzaghi, who scored many goals like that. But I’ve always said that Francesco Totti is my role model. I’ve watched videos of him, and I can see myself in his style of play, especially in my movement on the pitch. But for me personally, with Francesco Totti being such a legend, he’s someone I look up to and take inspiration from.
I started out at the Escola, gave a good account of myself, and was invited for a trial at Barcelona. My parents never told me I was going on trial at Barcelona, so I just went to enjoy myself and have fun playing football like every other kid. After the trials, my parents sat me down and told me what I’d achieved, but at first I didn’t fully understand what they were telling me. Over time, you really come to appreciate it, and it was such a happy period in my life.
Football has been my saviour on many occasions and kept me on the straight and narrow, because at certain points in my career, without it, I could have taken a completely different path. Football’s the best thing that’s ever happened to me. It’s always been my first love. For me, it’s always been about having fun and enjoying myself. Without football, I’m not sure what I’d do or where I’d be in life, but I’m under no illusions that to achieve everything I want, I need to work even harder. I’m putting in the work and I’m over the moon to be a professional footballer, but I want to push myself even harder to make sure I achieve my goals.
I always take each day as it comes and try to improve constantly, but it’s definitely something that’s at the back of my mind. Spain is blessed with incredible players in every position and the competition is fierce, but I’m going to give it my absolute all, both on and off the pitch, to earn a place in the team.
It’ll be no mean feat because the competition is so strong, but nothing’s impossible. I’m confident that with a combination of hard work and talent, I’ll be on that plane. In the end, everything’s mapped out, but we’ll see how things pan out in the future. I believe I have what it takes to play for Spain’s senior side at the World Cup and make a real impact.
