Inigo Martinez and Asencio likely to miss out despite squad expansion

Spain are preparing for the Nations League finals, which kick off on 5 June with a semi-final clash against France. La Roja secured their place in the last four after knocking out the Netherlands in the quarter-finals. De la Fuente will reveal his squad on Monday, with FIFA having authorised an expansion to 26 players for this international window.

That gives the Spain boss three more options, and he regains key names for this break. In the last call-up, injuries to Dani Vivian and Aymeric Laporte, as well as a last-minute absence for Inigo Martinez, forced changes. Raul Asencio and Dean Huijsen were the surprise inclusions at the time.

Huijsen, who has already signed for Real Madrid, made a strong impression against his birth nation and is now tipped to retain his place. Vivian returns, Cubarsi is considered untouchable, and Laporte remains a regular when fit – making his inclusion likely as well.

With Huijsen emerging as the frontrunner to round out the central defence, journalist Felipe del Campo, from Spanish outlet Marca, reports that both Asencio and Inigo Martinez will be left out unless there is a late injury. Asencio would be first in line in case of a last-minute change.

Striker concerns remain

While De la Fuente has depth at centre-back, he is lacking options up front. Two of his regular forwards – Ferran Torres and Ayoze Perez – are both injured and unlikely to recover in time for the Final Four.

Mikel Oyarzabal is a guaranteed pick, Alvaro Morata is expected to be included based on his role despite limited minutes in Turkey, and Samu Omorodion is also in contention despite not seeing much game time with the national team.

There's also the wildcard of Mikel Merino, who could feature as a false nine after spending recent months at Arsenal.