Spain are preparing for their Nations League fixtures this week with Switzerland and Portugal, but the main topic surrounding the national team remains the names that Luis Enrique has decided to leave out rather than those he has taken.
The likes of Liverpool’s Thiago Alcantara and Barcelona’s Ansu Fati were left out of the squad, with the Spanish media even asking the question if the best XI of players left out would beat that which will be selected by Luis Enrique.
One of those was Paris Saint-Germain’s Sergio Ramos. The former Real Madrid captain is said to be extremely disappointed not to get the call from La Roja by Mundo Deportivo.
Ramos has struggled with fitness issues for the past 18 months but appears to be in good shape again for PSG. The Spaniard has featured in each of their 11 games so far this season, coming on in one, starting the other ten and completing the 90 minutes in eight of them. The quality of his performances has led to PSG considering a renewal for Ramos, who is out of contract next summer.
Ramos is still hopeful that he can work his way into the Spain squad for the World Cup in November. Luis Enrique did not rule it out during his press conference on Friday, telling Sport that the door was open.
“The [door] is not closed to any Spanish player that is available for selection. I don’t know the percentage of these players which will be at the World Cup. You want 80%? Well 80%… I don’t know…”
“It is great news that Sergio Ramos can return to the pitch after a year-and-a-half out due to injuries. Now he is doing so in a continuous way. I can say to you what you want, but I think I have called the best players in his position. The rest, white smoke.”
