There aren't too many real surprises as Luis Aragones names his 23 man squad for Euro 2008 and , as expected, Raul has been omitted , with La Liga top goal scorer Dani Guiza and Zaragoza's Sergio García added to the Spanish strikeforce.
In goal, Andres Palop is included ahead of Diego López , while Fernando Navarro of Real Mallorca gets the call up to the defence.
Rubén de la Red's outstanding season at Getafe makes him the club's first Spanish representative in a major tournament. Villarreal's Santi Cazorla has also been included after a some fantastic performances that have helped his club side toward their highest ever La Liga finish.
The core of the side is pretty much as expected, with Villa and Torres in attack, Casillas in goal, Puyol and Sergio Ramos in defence and Iniesta, Cesc, Xavi and Senna as the preferred midfield options.
Of course there is no place for Albelda, who has missed most of the season after being ostracised at Valencia . The other notable absentees include Ángel López of Villarreal, Valencia's Joaquín, Bojan Krkić (who pulled out of the squad after admitting that he is fatigued), and Atlético Madrid's Pablo Ibáñez, Antonio López and Mariano Pernía.
Spanish Euro 2008 Squad:
Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Pepe Reina (Liverpool), Andrés Palop (Sevilla).
Defenders: Carles Puyol (Barcelona), Juanito (Real Betis), Arbeloa (Liverpool), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Fernando Navarro (RCD Mallorca), Raúl Albiol (Valencia), Carlos Marchena (Valencia), Joan Capdevila (Villarreal).
Midfielders: Cesc (Arsenal), Andrés Iniesta (Barcelona), Xavi Hernández (Barcelona), Rubén de la Red (Getafe), Xabi Alonso (Liverpool), David Silva (Valencia), Santiago Cazorla (Villarreal), Marcos Senna (Villarreal).
Forwards: Fernando Torres (Liverpool), Daniel González Güiza (RCD Mallorca), David Villa (Valencia), Sergio García (Real Zaragoza).



Comments