two big names outside selection


Friday, March 18, 2022 at 5:44 PM• Mart van Mourik

The final selection of Spain for the coming international match has been announced. National coach Luis Enrique and his team will face Albania and Iceland on March 26 and March 29, respectively. The most notable absentees in the selection of la Roja are David De Gea and Sergio Busquets. Where the latter does not appear fit enough to join, Unai Simón (Athletic Club), David Raya (Brentford) and Robert Sanchez (Brighton & Hove Albion) are preferred over the Manchester United goalkeeper.

It is the first time since his debut in the Spanish national team (June 2014) that De Gea has been excluded from the final squad. In addition, Luis Enrique’s decision is notable given the fact that the goalkeeper was voted Premier League Player of the Month in January. In addition, Chelsea keeper Kepa Arrizabalaga did not survive the selection. At the same time, Luis Enrique is keeping Busquets out of the selection as a precaution, as he has ‘a large number of games ahead of him’.

It is particularly striking that Raya is in the final selection. Brentford’s closing post has never been active in LaLiga and has not been called up to the national team before. The decision may be comparable to that of national coach Louis van Gaal to bring Mark Flek to the the Dutch squad. In 2012, 26-year-old Raya exchanged the youth academy of UE Cornellà for that of Blackburn Rovers, clubs that worked together at the time. In the 2018/19 season, the keeper made the switch to Brentford, where he grew into a permanent base player this season.

“It is part of the goalkeeper policy that we are currently working on,” Luis Enrique explained at the press conference about his choice for calling up Raya. “He has been doing very well for a long time. I would really like to see him in a specific composition of players. And that’s why he was called up. It’s a surprise to a lot of people, but not to us. He has the level, but I want to see it in context, in the setting†