Just 15 months ago, on 14th July 2024, the Spanish national team were crowned European champions after a 2-1 victory over England at the Olympic Stadium in Berlin.

Of the eleven players who started that final, only four are available for the upcoming World Cup qualifying matches against Georgia in Elche and Bulgaria in Valladolid.

The majority of absences this international break are due to injury, though none are considered extremely serious. Consequently, the five players who missed the start of training camp in Las Rozas this afternoon are expected to be strong candidates for the 2026 World Cup squad upon their return.

Rodri and Lamine Yamal among latest withdrawals

The five injured players are Dani Carvajal, Rodri, Fabian Ruiz, Lamine Yamal, and Nico Williams. Rodri and Yamal were initially named in coach De la Fuente's squad last Friday. Rodri aggravated a right hamstring injury during Sunday's Brentford-Manchester City match.

Barcelona's Lamine Yamal's situation has also faced scrutiny, with reports of exchanges between coach Hansi Flick and De la Fuente. Following his call-up for Spain, Barcelona issued a statement confirming a recurrence of his pubic discomfort.

Furthermore, both Aymeric Laporte and Alvaro Morata have been omitted from the squad for technical reasons, bringing the total number of senior absentees for this international window to seven.

Unai Simon, Marc Cucurella, Robin Le Normand and Dani Olmo

The only four players who started the Euro 2024 final and remain in the current squad are Unai Simon, Marc Cucurella, Robin Le Normand, and Dani Olmo. Additionally, substitutes Martín Zubimendi, Mikel Oyarzabal (who scored the decisive goal), Mikel Merino, and Nacho also featured in that final. Of these four, only Nacho has not been included in De la Fuente's October squad.

R. Le Normand

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