Del Bosque explains Costa absence

Vicente del Bosque has insisted that Diego Costa’s absence from the latest Spain squad is down to doubts over the striker’s fitness.

The Chelsea star has been plagued with a hamstring injury in recent months but returned for the Blues’ final two Premier League matches of the season against West Brom and Sunderland.

Nonetheless, Costa was not called up by La Roja on Tuesday for their upcoming matches against Costa Rica and Belarus, leaving many journalists puzzled at a Press conference in aid of the squad announcement.

“[The absence of] Diego Costa is not an isolated issue,” he explained to those reporters.

“He’s in the process of overcoming muscle discomfort and we can’t afford to experiment with him.

“We saw that he wasn’t in top condition, so you [journalists] shouldn’t raise doubts about his absence. I considered bringing him.

“We’ve been in contact with Thiago Alcantara. He wanted to join [the squad], but he has a slight muscle strain that’s being treated in Barcelona. It was best not to force [his inclusion], but we’re counting on him.

“Almost every game played by Spain comes at a bad time. The dates are difficult to understand.

“It happens every time we get together, but we can’t complain. We already took time off in August and must adapt to the circumstances.

“Costa Rica had ​​a good World Cup and played some entertaining football. It’ll be a good match in Leon.

“Sergio Rico and Aleix Vidal have had great seasons. We’ve been looking closely at other goalkeepers and Rico deserves to be here. Aleix will also be awaiting the Europa League final.

“We've had a problem with Cesc [Fabregas] as he needs a nose operation, but we’ve included him similarly to [Sergio] Ramos. We have guarantees that they’ll be ready for June.”

Tags Belarus Cesc Fabregas Chelsea Costa Rica Diego Costa Euro 2016 friendly Sergio Ramos Spain Thiago Alcantara Vicente Del Bosque
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