New Spain boss Luis de la Fuente has confirmed he wanted Sergio Busquets to stay with his new La Roja squad.
Busquets was the last remaining member of the 2010 World Cup winning side, present at the 2022 World Cup, and the veteran midfielder has now opted to hang up his boots after 13 years with national team.
After winning 143 caps, Busquets bows out as the third most capped player in Spanish history, behind former teammates Sergio Ramos (180) and Iker Casillas (167), as a key part of Spain’s midfield for over a decade.
❤️ 𝗨𝗻 𝗺𝗶𝘁𝗼 𝗾𝘂𝗲 𝘆𝗮 𝗲𝘀 𝗟𝗘𝗬𝗘𝗡𝗗𝗔.
🫶 @5sergiob se despide de la @SEFutbol tras ganarlo 𝗧𝗢𝗗𝗢.
🏆 Campeón del Mundial de 2010 y de la Eurocopa de 2012.
👕 𝟭𝟰𝟯 veces internacional.
🙏 ¡¡𝗚𝗥𝗔𝗖𝗜𝗔𝗦, 𝗕𝗨𝗦𝗜!!
🔗 https://t.co/L0JmE4cVBB pic.twitter.com/NJ4T1dcg8k
— Selección Española de Fútbol (@SEFutbol) December 16, 2022
RFEF President Luis Rubiales also paid tribute to Busquets, following his decision to step away from international duty, and de la Fuente confirmed he did ask the Barcelona star to reconsider.
“I spoke to him and he informed me he’d made his decision. I tried to convince him, but he’s a man with clear ideas and he’d already made his choice. I can only respect that”, as per reports from Mundo Deportivo.
Spain will now kick off their Euro 2024 qualification campaign with a new manager, in de la Fuente, with Busquets’ La Blaugrana colleague Jordi Alba expected to take over as captain, ahead of facing Norway in March.
Is better he retire