The list drops at 11:30am local time on Friday from the Ciudad del Fútbol in Las Rozas, with the head coach in front of the media an hour later. It is De la Fuente’s first squad since Spain lifted the World Cup in July, and the first with two stars on the shirt.
He cannot simply name the same 26 that finished the tournament.
Marcos Llorente has retired from international duty, and Pedro Porro has been missing club matches with a muscle problem, which leaves the right-back slot without a first-choice option. Iván Fresneda, Marc Pubill and Eric García are the names in play. Borja Iglesias is also out injured, opening a striker berth for Sergio Camello or Roberto Fernández, according to squad previews across the Spanish press.
Fermín López expected back in midfield
Fermín López is expected to return after missing the World Cup with an injury. The Barcelona midfielder has four goals and two assists in the opening weeks of the season, and looks a natural inclusion at the expense of Gavi, who has barely played for Hansi Flick and has not built up match rhythm.
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Joan García went off with knee discomfort in Barcelona’s most recent LaLiga game, and the federation was still weighing the goalkeeper’s fitness 24 hours out from the announcement. Dean Huijsen, who missed the World Cup, is expected to be recalled in central defence.
The Barcelona-Yamal noise never went away
Lamine Yamal is in form. He starred in Barcelona’s opening-weeks rout of Valencia, and previews of the list expect him among the forwards. But the club-country row that flared a year ago, when Barcelona accused Spain of playing him through a groin problem across September and November 2025, has never been fully closed. Flick was openly critical of how the winger was used, and both sides carried the argument into the buildup to the World Cup.
How De la Fuente decides to manage Yamal’s minutes at Wembley on 26 September, in front of a Barcelona coach who has already made his views public, is the question that hangs over the window.
Nations League defence opens against England
Spain open the defence of the Nations League at Wembley against England on Saturday 26 September. Croatia visit Seville on 29 September, Czechia host in Oviedo on 3 October, and Spain close in Split against Croatia on 6 October. The window is a new four-match block, double the usual, and the first competitive fixtures Spain have played as reigning world champions.
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