Spain winger Yeremy Pino is at risk of missing the rest of the World Cup, while there are also fears over an injury sustained by Nico Williams.
Pino and Williams suffered issues after coming on as second-half substitutes, for Alex Baena and Lamine Yamal respectively, during Spain’s 1-0 win over Uruguay in Guadalajara on Friday. Pino injured his collarbone and Williams experienced a groin problem.
“Pino can miss the rest of the World Cup,” Spain head coach Luis de la Fuente said at his post-match press conference. “It is a collarbone injury. We will do more scans tomorrow.
“He was suffering a lot, it was heroic that he helped us until the end of the game.”
Crystal Palace’s Pino and Athletic Club’s Williams, both 23, are set for full scans on Saturday, with Spain waiting to discover the extent of their injuries. There are fears from sources close to the Spain dressing room that both forwards will miss the remainder of the tournament.
If either or both of them are ruled out of the World Cup, Spain will not be able to call up any replacements. FIFA’s deadline for doing that is 24 hours before a team’s first game at the tournament.
Friday’s victory against Uruguay saw Spain qualify for the knockouts as winners of Group H, having drawn with Cape Verde in their opening game before beating Saudi Arabia. De La Fuente’s side will face the Group J runners-up, either Austria or Algeria, in the last 32 in Los Angeles on June 2.
Spain’s options could be severely limited
Spain paid a high price for their final group stage game.
De la Fuente’s team secured top spot in Group H and a place in the knockout stage with a 1-0 win against Uruguay, but what followed after the final whistle will have a significant impact on their chances in the competition.
With Pino and Williams potentially unavailable, Spain’s options in the wide areas are severely limited. De la Fuente has started Baena and Yamal on the wings in their last two games. Both players are expected to keep their places in the next round, although Yamal is still playing limited minutes as he only returned from a hamstring injury shortly before the World Cup began.
Yamal scored in Spain’s win over Saudi Arabia but has also been experiencing fitness issues (Patrick Smith — FIFA/FIFA via Getty Images)
Concerns grow when you look at the bench. De la Fuente called up Liverpool’s latest signing, Victor Munoz, to provide reliable backup in the position, but the former Osasuna man also suffered a setback with his calf injury during the first weeks of the World Cup. He has not played a minute yet, and his return to action is expected to be managed very carefully.
This leaves Ferran Torres as the only available wide player from the bench. However, the Barcelona man is not in the best form. He has lacked a clinical edge in the competition and has been erratic in front of goal, as he was in Spain’s shock opening draw with Cape Verde. He also missed big chances against Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.
There is still hope, and Spain are waiting for the tests and scans on all injured players on Saturday to find out the extent of their injuries. But in a long competition like this, this is far from the perfect scenario for De la Fuente.
