Goal.com

31-Dec-2012 5:50:00 PM

The 62-year-old trainer knows that his players achieved a lot in 2012, but has called on them to maintain their winning habit by sweeping all before them in Brazil in the new year

Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has stated that although he is very satisfied with his country's exploits in the past year, he wants la Roja to continue their good work into 2013 by sealing qualification to the next World Cup and winning the Confederations Cup.

Following European Championship success under Luis Aragones in 2008, la Seleccion and Del Bosque consolidated their 2010 World Cup triumph by winning Euro 2012 in Poland and Ukraine, their third consecutive major trophy.

And while the 62-year-old is extremely proud of what that success meant to Spain, which is gripped by economic crisis and has almost five million people out of work, he was keen to put things in perspective.

"It has been a good year for the national team," he told AS. "Winning the Euros, the second consecutive one after winning it with Luis in 2008, was the challenge and we have achieved it. But we must not wallow in what we have done in the past if we want to maintain this level in the future.

"Personally I am proud that this title was a joy for the country in a difficult moment, although I said at the time that it is not going to fix the problems in Spain."

Nevertheless, the former Real Madrid coach is keen to improve on his country's current standing in the game and sees qualification to the next World Cup as the best way of moving forward.

"The first objective is to qualify for the World Cup in Brazil," he continued. "In March we have two decisive games, against Finland and then against France. Beating Finland would give us the calmness to go to France in a game that could be decisive.

"We know that we cannot allow ourselves to be complacent against the rivals that theoretically we should be beating, because that would be fatal."

Del Bosque is also keen to take advantage of the upcoming Confederations Cup, and believes that the tournament can benefit the country in their quest to win back-to-back World Cups.

"We will approach it with every respect and with the greatest expectations," he insisted. "It's a trophy that Spain has only been in once, one that you can only participate in by being world champions, one that takes place in the same country as the next World Cup.

"The Confederations Cup is interesting. Participating helped Spain win the World Cup in 2010. We knew the stadiums (in South Africa), the atmosphere, the conditions and also the difficulties of a tournament that simulates the format of the World Cup.

"Losing against the United States in the 2009 edition was a lesson that served us well in 2010. All of those experiences served us in the World Cup. I hope that we take advantage of the next Confederations Cup in the same way, that we go to compete with the best and with the intention of winning."

La Roja have been drawn against Uruguay, Tahiti and the winners of the 2013 African Cup of Nations for the tournament, which kicks off on June 15.