In a surprise move, Spanish national team coach Luis Enrique has opted to leave out influential defender Sergio Ramos from La Furia Roja's Euro 2020 squad. The European giants announced the final list of players that will be present in this summer's tournament, with the Real Madrid captain being the biggest absentee.
This comes after an injury-plagued season for the Blancos center-back, with the 35-year-old being limited to just 15 starts in the Spanish top-flight throughout the 2020/21 campaign. His injury record in 2021 has been nothing short of horrible, with the iconic defender making only four appearances for Real Madrid in this calendar year.
Nonetheless, his omission raises eyebrows as he has made 180 appearances for his national team and played a crucial role in their Euro 2008, Euro 2012, and 2010 FIFA World Cup triumphs. In fact, the last time Ramos was not called up for Spain for a major international tournament was back in 2004.
"My conversation with Sergio yesterday remains private, I won't tell anyone," head coach Luis Enrique said when explaining his decision.
"It was not easy to tell him something which was not positive for him, but I have to make decisions which I and my staff consider is best for the team."
The defender's injury record is an understandable reason for his exclusion, but it should be noted that Enrique had enough space to name an additional two players in his Euro 2020 squad. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the physical strain players have been put under due to the tight schedule, UEFA permitted national teams to name up to 26 players, but Spain have decided to take only 24 footballers for the tournament.
Ramos' omission means that for the first time, there will be no Real Madrid player in Spain's roster for a major international tournament. In fact, the days when Los Blancos and Barcelona dominated the Furia Roja lineup are gone, with nine of the 24 players being from the Premier League.
Former Barcelona manager Luis Enrique becomes the first Spain manager to name a squad for a major tournament with no Real Madrid players pic.twitter.com/gblcQrTKEe
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) May 24, 2021
Aymeric Laporte, who recently switched allegiance from France to Spain, was given a call-up and joins the likes of David de Gea, Robert Sanchez, Eric Garcia, Cesar Azpilicueta, Diego Llorente, Rodri, Ferran Torres, and Adama Traore on the list. Unfortunately, there was no room on the roster for the world's most expensive goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga as he has lost his starting role to Édouard Mendy at Chelsea. Check out the 24-man roster in full below.
Goalkeepers: Unai Simon, David de Gea, Robert Sanchez;
Defenders: Jose Gaya, Jordi Alba, Pau Torres, Aymeric Laporte, Eric Garcia, Diego Llorente, Cesar Azpilicueta, Marcos Llorente;
Midfielders: Sergio Busquets, Rodri, Pedri, Thiago, Koke, Fabian;
Forwards: Dani Olmo, Mikel Oyarzabal, Alvaro Morata, Gerard Moreno, Ferran Torres, Adama Traore, Pablo Sarabia.
