Luis Enrique insists he has picked a Spain squad with enough experience to win the World Cup after omitting veterans Thiago Alcantara and Sergio Ramos.
The 2010 winners will be without their most capped player of all-time, Ramos, who hasn’t played for his country since March 2021 but has returned to prominent with PSG this season following last year’s injury troubles.
Thiago, too, has regularly struggled with injuries but has been a regular fixture in Liverpool’s midfield this season but has been overlooked in favour of Barcelona youngsters Gavi and Pedri.
Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea, as expected, has been left out while there is no place for Chelsea’s Kepa who looked certain to be included before he suffered a foot injury against Brighton earlier this month.
Sending a message of thanks to those players he overlooked, Enrique said: ‘The message is of thanks. I know it’s a disappointment.
‘They deserved to be here, but only 26 can be in the squad. If it were a normal World Cup, we would integrate the physical needs into the training, but halfway through the season we are not going to work on the physical level of a player.
‘I’m not going to go into the players that aren’t on the list. I thank everyone who has helped us get here, but now the important ones are the 26 called up.
‘We have a lot of young people, but also veterans. There is a good mix.
‘Being a World Cup in the middle of the season, we will not work on a physical level, but on a tactical level.
‘Everyone can play and it will depend on their condition and what they teach us.’
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