Spanish winger, Nico Williams says he did not enjoy playing against Croatia.
The 2010 World Cup champions clashed with the 2018 Mundial finalists in their opener of the ongoing 2024 European Championship.
Goals from Álavora Morata, Fabián Ruiz and Daniel Carvajal sealed the win for Luis de la Fuente's side.
However, Nico Williams was replaced by Mikel Merino in the 69th minute.
After the game, he feared he would be dropped from the squad but it also made him doubly determined to show what he could do against Italy.
"I didn't play with joy," he told the coaching staff. "I'm going to give it my all in the next game.”
Nico Williams bounced back with impressive performances and finally scored his first goal in Spain's 4-1 win against Georgia on Sunday night.
The Athletic Bilbao attacker is expected to keep his place in the team when they come up against Germany in their quarterfinal game on Friday.