Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque has been forced to call Hector Bellerin into his squad, following Dani Carvajal’s injury.
The Real Madrid star was injured during the Champions League final on Saturday evening, and is now a doubt for the European Championships next month.
Doctors are assessing the extent of the defender’s injury, and Del Bosque has until Tuesday to decide whether he will take the Real man, or whether to replace his name with Bellerin, who will take Carvajal’s squad place for Wednesday’s friendly.
“At the moment, he’s in the squad for our next match against South Korea on Wednesday in Salzburg,” the Coach said is quoted as saying after today’s 3-1 friendly win.
“What I wish is for Carvajal to recover in time, but I’m prepared for everything.
“We’re in the hands of our doctors and waiting on what they tell us about both players [Carvajal and Koke].
“At the moment, Bellerin stays until we see the extent of Carvajal’s injury.
“I thought about Mario [Gaspar], but we have to be consistent with our idea with which our preparations are based on, and therefore Bellerin stays.
“We were comfortable in the first half and controlled the match with Bruno [Soriano] and Cesc [Fabregas]
“In the second half, although we outnumbered them, we had less control and everything has more equal.
“I’m delighted with the young lads as they amply fulfilled what we expected of them.
“Ten of them will return to Spain [on Sunday], except for Bellerin, and I have 48 hours to deliver the final 23 for the Euros. Again, it all depends on the opinion of the doctors.”
The Arsenal youngster was in fine form this season, and earned a rightful place in the FA Premier League Team of the Year.
There is no doubt in my mind that he deserves his place on the plane regardless, and I think he could have a good impact on the tournament.
Would you prefer Bellerin to get an extended break this summer? Do you agree that he deserves his place?
Pat J