Ten Spain National Team Players to Miss Iraq Match Due to Injuries and Late Arrivals. The Spain national team will play their first friendly ahead of the World Cup without ten key players from the main squad. Those left out of the squad include injured players and those who joined the team late. The lineup will be bolstered by nine young footballers.
The Spanish national football team is facing serious personnel losses ahead of its first friendly match in preparation for the World Cup. The match against Iraq will take place on Thursday at the Riazor stadium, but as many as ten players from the main squad will not be able to take part. Head coach Luis de la Fuente has not included Marc Cucurella, Rodrigo Hernandez, Pedri, and Mikel Oyarzabal in the squad—these players are either recovering from injuries or joined the team later than the rest.
In addition, Lamine Yamal, Nico Williams, and Victor Muñoz are also out due to injuries. Three more—David Raya, Martin Zubimendi, and Fabián Ruiz—will not take the field as they only arrived at the team's camp the day before after the Champions League final and have not yet trained with the team.
As a result, according to RUSSPAIN, out of the 26 players called up for the World Cup, ten will miss the first preparatory match. To make up for the losses, the coaching staff has brought in nine young players for training: Marc Bernal, Javi Rodríguez, Jesús Rodríguez, Leo Román, Gonzalo García, Sergio Gómez, Jon Martín, Beñat Turrientes, and Javi Guerra. They will remain with the national team until the match against Iraq is finished.
The list of footballers who will take the field and their squad numbers has already been published. Among them are Leo Román (1), Marc Pubill (2), Grimaldo (3), Eric (4), M. Llorente (5), Merino (6), Ferran (7), Gonzalo (8), Gavi (9), Olmo (10), Yeremi (11), Pedro Porro (12), Joan Garcia (13), Laporte (14), Alex Baena (15), Jon Martin (16), Sergio Gomez (17), Bernal (18), Javi Guerra (19), Javi Rodriguez (20), Turrientes (21), Cubarsí (22), Unai Simón (23), Jesus R. (25), B. Iglesias (26).
Such personnel changes in the Spain national team are not unprecedented. Last season, clubs also had to adjust their lineups due to injuries and a tight schedule, a topic discussed in other materials as well, for example, in the review of the playoff opening between Baskonia and Joventut, where the importance of squad depth for successful performance was highlighted (more on personnel decisions in Spanish sports).
For reference: friendly matches ahead of major tournaments are traditionally used to test backup players and try out new combinations. In 2026, Spain continues its policy of rejuvenating the squad, which is confirmed by the inclusion of young players even under extraordinary circumstances. The Riazor Stadium in La Coruña regularly hosts national team matches, and the city itself is regarded as one of Galicia’s football centers.
