Saturday November 23, 2024

Muscle injury to sideline Laporte from Spain Euro opener

Published : 14 Jun 2024, 00:02

Updated : 14 Jun 2024, 00:04

DF News Desk

Aymeric Laporte (top) of Spain heads the ball during the Round of 16 match against Morocco at the 2022 FIFA World Cup at Education City Stadium in Al Rayyan, Qatar, Dec. 6, 2022. File Photo: Xinhua by Li Ming.

Spain central defender Aymeric Laporte has been sidelined with a muscle problem, as his side is prepare for their 2024 UEFA Euro opening game against Croatia on Saturday, reported Xinhua.

The French-born stopper missed Thursday's training session to carry out recovery work on a problem, although the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) has informed that he will travel to Berlin with the rest of the squad on Friday ahead of the game.

Although he will be with the squad, Laporte is almost certain to miss the game, with either Nacho Fernandez or Dani Vivian likely to partner Robin le Normand in the heart of the Spain defense.

Laporte was one of the last players to join the Spain squad after finishing the season late in Saudi Arabia. He played just over 40 minutes in Spain's 5-1 win over Northern Ireland last Saturday, his first competitive minutes since May 23 when he was shown a red card while playing for Al-Nassr.