Spain squad: Luis de la Fuente explains Joan Garcia omission despite Barcelona start

De la Fuente holds the line on goalkeepers

Spain’s head coach has drawn a firm line in the sand: club badges don’t pick the national team. Luis de la Fuente left Joan Garcia out of his latest Spain squad for next month’s World Cup qualifiers, even after the 24-year-old’s high-profile move from Espanyol to Barcelona and a sharp start to the league season. “I would not call him up because he’s now at Barcelona. He did well at Espanyol,” De la Fuente said, stressing he’s tracked the keeper since he was 18 or 19 and knows exactly what he can do.

For the double header away to Bulgaria and Turkey, the coach stuck with his trusted trio in goal: Unai Simon, David Raya, and Alex Remiro. Simon remains his number one. Continuity matters here. Simon has anchored Spain through major tournaments and high-pressure nights, while Raya brings elite shot-stopping and distribution from his Arsenal run, and Remiro has been a steady, top-level performer in La Liga. The message? Stability beats impulse when the margins are thin.

De la Fuente also used this window to bring back two pillars who recently shook off injuries: Rodri Hernandez and Dani Carvajal. The midfield gets its metronome back, the right flank its veteran edge. Barcelona are well represented too. Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsi, Pedri, Gavi, and Fermin Lopez are in, underlining how much youth and technique Spain are leaning on. Left out alongside Garcia were Alejandro Balde and Ferran Torres, a reminder that pedigree alone doesn’t secure a seat on the plane.

So why not Garcia, especially after his Paris Olympics shine and two strong league starts for Barcelona? The coach didn’t dodge it: pressure, noise, and transfers won’t move him. “If I felt pressure, I would have brought him in. I don’t feel it for him or anyone else,” he said. He also flagged the obvious bottleneck. “It’s not easy to get into a squad of 23. These squads are of a very high standard. It’s not easy to remove those who are already there. In the top 10 goalkeepers, there are six or seven Spaniards.” That last line tells you how crowded the position is.

Spain’s goalkeeper pool is as deep as it’s been in years. Beyond the chosen three, there’s a long list of contenders pushing hard every weekend, from established names to rising prospects. That makes breaking the door down less about one hot month and more about stacking performances for a sustained stretch. For keepers, it’s even tougher: one shirt, few changes, huge consequences for any dip in form or focus.

There’s also the tactical comfort De la Fuente gets with his current picks. Spain build from the back. They ask their keeper to manage space behind a high line, take part in the first phase of possession, and stay alert to transitional chaos. Simon’s calm under pressure, Raya’s passing range, and Remiro’s clean handling fit that script. In hostile away games—Bulgaria and Turkey qualify—the coach would rather not experiment, especially at the one position where uncertainty bleeds into the entire team.

None of this shuts the door on Garcia. The coach went out of his way to say it. “Joan’s time will come for sure.” What does that path look like? Minutes, consistency, and resilience. If he keeps starting for Barcelona, banks clean sheets, and handles big moments in La Liga—and potentially in European nights—he’ll force another conversation. Spain call-ups are often about timing as much as talent. Catch the staff during an injury run or a dip from a rival, and the phone rings. Stay hot, and keep it ringing.

Garcia’s transfer narrative doesn’t help or hurt him the way some assume. Moving across the city line from Espanyol to Barcelona raises the profile, but it also raises the scrutiny. Every touch is clipped, every mistake magnified. De la Fuente’s view is blunt: he won’t be swayed by hype spikes or backlash. He prefers a larger sample size and the trust he’s built with players across cycles, from youth tournaments to senior camps.

There’s a lesson tucked into the outfield selections, too. Gavi returns as part of a young core that the coach backs repeatedly, while others like Balde and Ferran sit this one out. It’s performance, not reputation. If that’s true in midfield and attack, it’s doubly true in goal. The Spain staff track training habits, locker-room influence, and how players react to the bad days, not just the highlight reels.

For the upcoming qualifiers, Spain will count on what worked through their recent high points: a balanced back line protected by Rodri, full-backs who pick their moments, and a goalkeeper who won’t blink when the stadium turns up the volume. The double away trip is a stress test. Bulgaria can be stubborn at home, and Turkey’s intensity can rattle teams that don’t manage the first 20 minutes. In that kind of noise, familiarity matters more than flair.

And if Garcia keeps delivering? The national team calendar is long. There are more windows, more camps, more chances to reshuffle. Injuries happen, form swings, and coaches adjust. De la Fuente made one thing clear: he rates the player, he knows the player, and he won’t hand out a cap to make a headline. He’ll hand it out when the moment feels earned and the balance of the squad stays intact.

What the decision says about Spain’s project

Spain are leaning into a simple idea: clarity beats chaos. Pick a core, reward long-term form, change slowly. It’s how you get cohesion in a team that wants the ball and expects to play 60 to 70 possessions under pressure every match. That demands trust routes from the keeper to the midfield anchor to the creative line. Rotations still happen, but not at the spine without a compelling reason.

For Garcia, and for every keeper circling the setup, the takeaway is encouraging rather than cold. The door is open, but you have to push it. Keep the numbers strong, show command in big-game moments, and match the personality the staff wants from a Spain number one. When that aligns, the call won’t be about a badge or a buzz—it’ll be about belonging.