Spain to delay Gavi return until 2025 after Barcelona fury at ACL injury
- Gavi will be sidelined for around nine months following injury in Euro 2024 qualifier
- Barcelona have struggled with absences throughout 2023/24 so far
- Blaugrana manager should have Pedri and Frenkie de Jong available vs Rayo Vallecano
Spain will avoid calling up Gavi until March 2025 after the Barcelona midfielder suffered a severe knee injury in his country's final Euro 2024 qualifier against Georgia on Sunday.
The 19-year-old suffered a complete tear of his anterior cruciate ligament at the weekend, leaving Barca enraged with one of their key players now absent for most if not all of the remaining 2023/24 season.
While his club absence may be closer to nine months, meaning a return around August 2024, the Spanish Football Federation has decided not to include Gavi in their national team squads until March 2025, when Spain's qualification campaign for the 2026 World Cup begins.
It also means the teenager will miss La Roja's defence of their UEFA Nations League title and next year's Olympic Games in Paris.
AS report Barca are angry with the RFEF over their decision to play Gavi in the qualifiers against Cyprus and Georgia, but Spain manager Luis de la Fuente insisted the blow could have happened to any of his players.
He said: "Right now I understand everything. It is a very hard time for the player, for Barcelona and also for the national team, his teammates and me. It seems we had lost. Yesterday we were talking about Gavi and today this happens. This is the ugly part of football and I am very sorry for the player.
"It is the most bitter moment of my career.
"If it is not Gavi may be another. This can happen in any situation. Soccer is a risky activity. It was an accident and it was a disgrace. It is perfect for playing the game, like the rest of the teammates. It was misfortune."
Barca have struggled with injuries in midfield already this season, but Pedri is back in action while Dutchman Frenkie de Jong is expected to feature in the La Liga champions' return to domestic action at Rayo Vallecano on Saturday.
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