Spain coach Luis Enrique on Monday left veteran defender Sergio Ramos out of his Euro 2020 squad but called up centre-back Aymeric Laporte, who recently switched his football nationality.
Ramos, the 35-year-old Real Madrid captain has struggled with injury this season and has featured just five times since the start of the year.
“It was a very difficult decision but he has not been able to play this season and has hardly trained since January,” Luis Enrique told the press conference as he announced a 24-man squad.
“I called him yesterday (Sunday), it was hard, difficult. I feel bad, because he is very professional and he helps the national team a lot. And he can still help it in the future. But I have to look for the best for the squad.”
The absence of Ramos means there is not a single Madrid player in the Spain squad.
Laporte, a 26-year-old Manchester City defender, was born in southwest France and was called up three times for Les Blues but never made it onto the pitch.
While France coach Didier Deschamps has a wealth of central defenders to choose from, Luis Enrique has had fewer options since Gerard Pique retired in 2018.
The article was originally published on Nigeria News