Spain’s players always believed they were capable of going all the way at the European Championship and they have now proved their potential by advancing to the semi-finals, forward Mikel Oyarzabal said on Sunday.

Spain face a fascinating clash against old rivals Italy at Wembley Stadium on Tuesday.

“From the first day we were confident that we were a solid group, a united group and that we were good enough and we’ve proved that,” Oyarzabal told reporters.

“People are free to say what they like, that’s part of football but we never had any doubts at any moment, we always believed in ourselves.”

Spain are meeting Italy for the fourth Euros in a row, beating them on penalties in a Euro 2008 quarter-final, hammering them 4-0 in the Euro 2012 final and then losing 2-0 to them to exit Euro 2016.

Italy have been one of the outstanding teams in the tournament and overcame Belgium to reach the semis but Oyarzabal said his side did not feel any inferiority complex.

“They’re a top-level team with top players but we’re not any less than them,” he said.