Spain named its 26-man squad for the World Cup in North America on Monday morning, and Dean Huijsen was left out. The defender, who switched international allegiance from the Netherlands and has been capped seven times by Spain, had been in the 55-man preliminary squad but did not make the final cut.
The omission came after Huijsen reposted an Instagram graphic from his father Don before the announcement, showing him in Sofascore's team of the season alongside Vinicius Jr, Jude Bellingham, Kylian Mbappe and Federico Valverde. It was a stark contrast to the decision that followed: Luis de la Fuente also left out Dani Carvajal, Robin Le Normand and Álvaro Morata.
The squad named on Monday included three goalkeepers, eight defenders, eight midfielders and seven forwards. Spain's goalkeepers are Unai Simón, David Raya and Joan García; the defenders are Marc Cucurella, Alejandro Grimaldo, Pau Cubarsí, Aymeric Laporte, Marc Pubill, Eric García, Marcos Llorente and Pedro Porro; the midfielders are Pedri, Fabián Ruiz, Martín Zubimendi, Gavi, Rodrigo Hernández, Álex Baena, Mikel Merino and Mikel Oyarzabal; and the forwards are Dani Olmo, Nico Williams, Yeremy Pino, Ferran Torres, Borja Iglesias, Víctor Muñoz and Lamine Yamal.
Spain are the European champions, but this squad carries a wrinkle that will stand out in the country and beyond: for the first time in history, it does not include a single representative from Real Madrid. Huijsen, 40 appearances into his debut season for Real after signing from AFC Bournemouth, had looked like part of the frame for this group, yet he was not among the names De la Fuente trusted for the tournament.
Yamal was included despite being described as a major doubt for Spain's first game against Cape Verde, leaving Spain with a squad that mixes certainty and risk in equal measure. For Huijsen, the message from Monday was plain: the preliminary list opened the door, but the final World Cup squad closed it.
