'We won't treat it like a friendly, we will compete'

It is set to be a tasty encounter at the Wanda Metropolitano as two favourites for the World Cup in the summer, Spain and Argentina, are set to battle it out in a friendly.

In his pre-match press conference, Lopetegui spoke about the impending clash which will see Lionel Messi start for 'La Albiceleste'.

"We are aware that we have come from playing the [World Cup] champions to now playing the runners-up, who have improved a lot with the arrival of [Jorge] Sampaoli," he told reporters.

"We have to try to do things well, without looking at what we have in front of us. We have to play like we always do".

The 51-year-old added: "I think it will be a beautiful match against Argentina, in a wonderful scenario, against one of the best players in the world. We will try to have good intentions, we do not think friendly, the feeling of all of us and of the players is to compete".

Finally turning his attention to the improvement of 'La Albiceleste' under the new coach, Lopetegui argued: "With Sampaoli, Argentina have improved as a collective. It has been a great evolution, within the great quality that the Argentinean team obviously has".