Barcelona youngster ruled out of Scotland clash

Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal has withdrawn from Spain’s squad for the EURO 2024 qualifiers against Scotland and Norway because of a hip injury, but it’s not expected to be a long-term issue. 

Spain are scheduled to play Scotland in the UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers on Thursday in Seville, with the visitors needing to avoid defeat to qualify for the competition. They won at home 2-0 against Spain in the first leg thanks to a brace from Scott McTominay.

The Scots have gone ahead to win all other games since then, while Spain has also improved in their games since then, winning all games played, including a title from the National League and beating Georgia and Cyprus 7-1 and 6-0, respectively.

Spain boss Luis de la Fuente admits that the team has improved since the loss, saying they are obligated to win as it will be a tough game, but his team isn’t seeking revenge.

Meanwhile, Barcelona will be relieved as they face a potential injury crisis before El Clásico on October 28.

“We’ve got an obligation to win. It’s our responsibility professionally because we respect the whole country. It’s not revenge; it’s a football game, very important, but a football game. It will be a very hard game, a tough game. We respect the Scotland national team a lot and their players. We will have to play at our best level in order to win because we’re playing against a top-level team. It’s obvious, just looking at the statistics, that we’ve improved,” the Spain boss said.

He also said that the team has improved in all aspects of the game, plays together as a team, and is defensively very strong. 

Meanwhile, avoiding a loss will help Scotland make the group stage of the Euro 2024, leaving Norway and Spain to fight for the second spot in the group.

Daniel Ademiju Idowu