MADRID (AP) - Spain coach Vicente del Bosque delayed naming his final squad for next month’s World Cup in Brazil to give injured Atletico Madrid striker Diego Costa a chance to recover.
Del Bosque was supposed to reduce his preliminary list of 30 players to 23 on Sunday. Instead, he picked a 19-player squad for a friendly against Bolivia on May 30 that doesn’t include any Atletico or Real Madrid players after they clashed in Saturday’s Champions League final, which Real won 4-1.
Del Bosque said “nobody is discarded” for the final squad that he has until June 2 to name according to FIFA regulations.
Diego Costa appeared to re-injure his right hamstring early in the final and went off after only nine minutes. Atletico defender Juanfran Torres also hurt his foot but was able to finish the match that went into extra time.
“We are doing it this way because we don’t know everyone’s physical condition and until June 2 we aren’t obligated to give FIFA our final squad,” Del Bosque said. “We would like that by June 2 everyone is ready to practice.”
Del Bosque said that Real’s and Atletico’s players finished the game “dead tired” and that he was still not sure how serious Diego Costa’s and Juanfran’s injuries were.
After its friendly with Bolivia, Spain will stop in Washington D.C. to play El Salvador on June 7 before heading to Brazil.
Spain’s title defense begins on June 13 in Salvador against the same Netherlands side it beat 1-0 in the 2010 final. Spain faces Chile in Rio de Janeiro on June 18 before closing Group B against Australia on June 23 in Curitiba.
Diego Costa pulled his right hamstring last weekend when Atletico won the Spanish league with a 1-1 draw at Barcelona. The Brazilian-born striker underwent an experimental treatment involving fluid derived from horse placenta to repair damaged cells during the week to try and recover for Saturday’s European final.
Del Bosque’s only surprise was calling up young Barcelona forward Gerard Deulofeu after he spent this season on loan at Everton. Del Bosque said that Deulofeu would only go to the World Cup if “there were injuries.”
Although Del Bosque insisted that he had not discarded anyone, it appears that strikers Alvaro Negredo and Fernando Llorente may have fallen out of favor. Both failed to make the 19-man squad that was again stocked with Barcelona midfielders Andres Iniesta, Xavi Hernandez, Cesc Fabregas and Sergio Busquets.
Fernando Torres was included and may make the team despite his ongoing struggles at Chelsea, especially if Diego Costa doesn’t recover in time.
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Spain:
Goalkeepers: Pepe Reina (Napoli), David de Gea (Manchester United)
Defenders: Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Gerard Pique (Barcelona), Javi Martinez (Bayern Munich), Raul Albiol (Napoli), Jordi Alba (Barcelona), Alberto Moreno (Sevilla)
Midfielders: Xavi Hernandez (Barcelona), Ander Iturraspe (Athletic Bilbao), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona), Santi Cazorla (Arsenal), Cesc Fabregas (Barcelona), David Silva (Manchester City), Andres Iniesta (Barcelona), Juan Mata (Manchester United)
Forwards: Pedro Rodriguez (Barcelona), Fernando Torres (Chelsea), Gerard Deulofeu (Barcelona)
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