Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea has been left out of the Spain squad for their upcoming international friendlies with Albania and Iceland.
Spain, who reached the semi-finals of the European Championship last summer, will continue their preparations for the 2022 World Cup with back-to-back home games against two sides who have failed to qualify for the tournament. However, Spain manager Luis Enrique has not included De Gea in his 23-man squad.
The United shot-stopper has been the Reds' standout player this term, in what has been a disappointing season for the club, producing a string of fine saves and performances. Despite that, he has only kept nine clean sheets in 37 games in all competitions.
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That statistic disguises how good De Gea has been this term. He has been head and shoulders above almost every other member of the squad and his form has kept Dean Henderson out of the team.
Nevertheless, it has not been enough to earn him a place in Enrique's squad for their fixtures with Albania and Iceland next week. Unai Simon, who was Spain's first-choice shot-stopper at the Euros last year, Brighton & Hove Albion's Robert Sanchez and David Raya of Brentford have all been preferred to De Gea.
The United goalkeeper, whose contract expires in 2023, has racked up 45 appearances for his country, but he has not played a single minute for them since a 1-0 defeat to Ukraine in the UEFA Nations League back in October 2020. He was on the bench throughout the Euros and did not feature in Spain's World Cup qualifying campaign.
De Gea, seemingly, has been replaced in the squad by Brentford keeper Raya. He has never played for his country at any level and his inclusion in the squad for the very first time has come as a shock.
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He joined Brentford from Blackburn Rovers in 2019 and played a key role in helping them earn promotion from the Championship last season. He has kept five clean sheets in 15 Premier League games this term.
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