Manchester City midfielder Rodri is available for Spain against Brazil at Real Madrid’s Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday, La Roja manager Luis de la Fuente has said.
Three-time Premier League winner Rodri has reportedly missed three days of training since being an unused substitute in his country’s 1-0 defeat to Colombia at London Stadium on Friday.
“Rodri has had to attend a family issue but he will join us this afternoon,” De la Fuente said. “He will be available and ready to go with no setbacks.”
The 27-year-old has been almost ever-present for City this season and could help Spain overcome their first friendly defeat since 2016 courtesy of Daniel Munoz’s acrobatic second-half winner against opponents also missing the likes of Dani Carvajal and Alvaro Morata.
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De la Fuente said he had been satisfied with Spain’s showing, which he felt gave several inexperienced and untested players the chance to test themselves before Uefa Euro 2024.
Brazil are likely to provide another stern challenge after handing England a rare defeat at Wembley Stadium on Saturday, when Endrick became the youngest ever scorer at the national stadium by netting the only goal of the game.
Spain v Brazil ‘could be semi-final’
De la Fuente called for Endrick’s admirers not to place too much pressure on the 17-year-old and called his side’s encounter with the Selecao “a real
“We know who we are up against,” said the 62-year-old, praising Real Madrid and Brazil winger Vinicius Jr. “It’s a match of great importance… it could be a World Cup semi-final.
“Defensively, we will try to highlight our strengths more to take the initiative. We will be careful against them but the important thing is is to focus on ourselves.
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“We will decide the game plan this afternoon. We have never played with three centre-backs but it could happen. Anything is possible. I’m not saying that we will play with three centre-backs tomorrow – who knows?”
Rodri is likely to return to club action when City seek a fifth consecutive home win in a top-of-the-table match against Arsenal at Etihad Stadium on Sunday.
Spain’s Euro campaign in Germany begins against Croatia on June 15 and proceeds to group-stage games against Italy and Albania.
