Spain head coach called Barcelona forward to explain his exclusion from Euro qualifiers

Luis de la Fuente, the new head coach of the Spanish national football team, did a complete overhaul in his first selection for the upcoming Euro 2024 qualifiers against Norway and Scotland.

While the likes of Gavi, Pedri (now withdrawn) and Alejandro Balde were included from Barcelona, there was no room for the likes of Jordi Alba, Eric Garcia, Ferran Torress and young forward Ansu Fati. 

In turn, three uncapped players, namely Real Sociedad’s Martin Zubimendi, Osasuna’s David Garcia and Espanyol’s Joselu Mato were added to the team.

In all fairness, Ansu Fati’s exclusion does not come as any surprise mostly because the 20-year-old has hardly played since the turn of the year.

In fact, from the beginning of the year to the date of writing, Barcelona have played 18 games and Fati has clocked more than 60 minutes in just four of them.

While this pretty much explains the youngster’s exclusion, De la Fuente was kind enough to get on a call with the 20-year-old to justify his decision. In fact, Spanish publication Mundo Deportivo says that the head coach showed him his total confidence for future matches.

The 61-year-old coach made sure Fati knows his absence was temporary mostly because he is not playing enough matches for Barcelona.

On top of everything, his current run of form has been a thing of worry as well, as it must be noted that his last goal dates back to January 19 against Ceuta FC in Copa de Rey.

This was, in fact, his last goal contribution for Barcelona as he has gone on a draught of 11 games without a goal or an assist.

Despite his ongoing struggles, though, De la Fuente told Fati that he still remains a highly valued player under his rank. He assured him that if he manages to get back to his previous self, he would call him up to the team in the first instance.