Spain are set to lock horns with Croatia in their opening Group B game of the 2024 European Championship on Saturday – and will be without a key player in their defensive setup.
Spain coach Luis de la Fuente revealed that Aymeric Laporte will not be available for after being ruled out due to an unnamed “issue”.
Highlighting that, although Laporte was fit enough to be on the pitch, De la Fuente said in his press conference that he was not going to consider the defender for selection.
The 62-year-old said to newsmen: “Aymeric Laporte didn’t get injured, he just had some issues and I decided we wouldn’t take the risk so he’s not going to play tomorrow.”
Back-to-back winners in 2008 and 2012, Spain’s last outing in the last edition was heartache in the semifinal, losing on penalties to eventual champions, Italy.
“We’re playing against another strong team tomorrow, it won’t be easy. It’s a very even tournament with some of the best players in the world, we have to perform to a really high level and get things right,” De la Fuente added.
Midfielder Rodri also hammered on the need to begin the tournament properly, in their group which consists of Italy and Albania.
“It’s a short tournament, the group is tough and we know how important a good first result is in this type of tournament.
“You are still nervous at the beginning. You want to see how the team will respond if you play at a high level and compete,” he said.
