Madrid’s world champions are back on the road, beginning a new Nations League campaign with the two stars earned in New York now on their shirts. Luis de la Fuente has named a 26-man Spain squad for the opening run of fixtures, making four alterations from the group that lifted the World Cup on 19 July.
The news from the club
Inter goalkeeper Josep Martínez and Espanyol forward Roberto Fernández are the fresh faces in De la Fuente’s selection, while Dean Huijsen and Fermín López return to the international fold.
Martínez takes the place of Joan García, who has been ruled out after experiencing physical discomfort in Barcelona’s latest league match. The Inter goalkeeper joins Unai Simón and David Raya among Spain’s three keepers.
Huijsen’s return follows Marcos Llorente’s decision to retire from international football after the World Cup triumph. The Real Madrid defender had missed the tournament and now comes back into a back line where Pedro Porro remains a specialist option at right-back, alongside the flexibility offered by Èric Garcia and Marc Pubill, both able to operate centrally or on the right.
Fermín and Roberto replace Gavi and Borja Iglesias, who have both had limited early-season involvement amid fitness problems and have been left out on selection grounds. Roberto arrives after a sharp start for Espanyol, scoring six times across LaLiga’s first six rounds.
The Madrid presence has also grown from the World Cup squad, when no Real Madrid player was selected. Barcelona still provide the largest club contingent, with seven players, but Huijsen joins Marc Cucurella, who moved to Real Madrid during the World Cup.
The Nations League itinerary
Spain open the 2026-27 Nations League at Wembley against England, where the champions will wear their new two-star badge for the first time. It is the opening stop in a four-match sequence that then brings home dates in Seville and Oviedo before a trip to the Croatian coast.
- England v Spain — Wembley
- Spain v Croatia — Ramón Sánchez-Pizjuán, Seville, 29 September
- Spain v Czech Republic — Oviedo, 3 October
- Croatia v Spain — Split, 6 October
Spain squad
Goalkeepers
- Unai Simón
- David Raya
- Josep Martínez
Defenders
- Pedro Porro
- Èric Garcia
- Pau Cubarsí
- Aymeric Laporte
- Marc Pubill
- Dean Huijsen
- Marc Cucurella
- Alejandro Grimaldo
Midfielders
- Rodri
- Martín Zubimendi
- Pedri
- Fabián Ruiz
- Mikel Merino
- Dani Olmo
- Álex Baena
- Fermín López
Forwards
- Nico Williams
- Yeremy Pino
- Mikel Oyarzabal
- Ferran Torres
- Roberto Fernández
- Lamine Yamal
- Víctor Muñoz
