With eight members of his provisional squad playing in yesterday’s Champions League final, Vicente Del Bosque decided to duck the issue of which 23 players he will take to Brazil, instead naming a group of 19 for next weekend’s friendly against Bolivia. Of the 30 members of the provisional squad, Llorente, Negredo and the injured Jesús Navas and Thiago have been left out, and Everton’s Gerard Deulofeu has been included for the first time. Del Bosque made it clear though that his final World Cup squad could change, depending in part on whether Navas and Diego Costa in particular recover from their injuries in time. (25.05.14)
Full squad:
Keepers: De Gea (Manchester United), Reina (Napoli);
Defenders: Jordi Alba and Piqué (Barcelona), Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Javi Martínez (Bayern Munich), Raúl Albiol (Napoli), Alberto Moreno (Sevilla);
Midfielders: Cazorla (Arsenal), Iturraspe (Athletic Bilbao), Busquets, Fàbregas, Iniesta and Xavi (Barcelona), David Silva (Manchester City), Mata (Manchester United);
Forwards: Pedro (Barcelona), Fernando Torres (Chelsea), Deulofeu (Everton).