Pau Cubarsi’s late call-up to the Spanish national team for their upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures against Denmark and Switzerland means that there are now four Barcelona players in Luis de la Fuente’s squad – that is still lower than usual, with the absences of Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres a reason for this.
Two others players that missed out were Inaki Pena, who has established himself as Barcelona’s first-choice goalkeeper, and Ansu Fati – who is also injured, like Lamine Yamal and Torres. As per Sport, de la Fuente spoke on both players during a recent interview.
“Inaki is a great goalkeeper, he has been with us at various stages. I celebrate that there are many outfield players and goalkeepers who play for their clubs because that is good for their teams and for the Spanish national team. Inaki has been in all the youth categories. He was a fixture. I celebrate his performance and I’m not surprised. We know his potential and capacity. And he has room for improvement.
“It hurts me a lot that Ansu has been injured again. And of course it is recoverable. His talent is fantastic, we love him very much. With me he has been in different stages and I’m sure he can come back. When he returns to playing, he will be in the process of gaining confidence, which is sometimes very complex, when you have a level as high as the one Ansu showed. But everything is a process.”
