Spain have been given hope that star winger Nico Williams could yet make the World Cup squad this summer, following his latest injury diagnosis. The Basque forward has been battling injuries all season, and many feared the worst when he limped off during Athletic Club’s 1-0 loss to Valencia at San Mames on Sunday.
Williams, 23, has spent much of the season in and out of the Athletic side with a sports hernia, which has had a major impact on his form too. In Los Leones’ penultimate game, he had started to look like his old self, scoring a brace in a 4-2 win over Alaves. Yet on Sunday, Williams pulled up after just half an hour, and limped off saying ‘it can’t be’.
Nico Williams given World Cup hope
After undergoing tests on Monday, Diario AS say that Williams still has hope of making the World Cup yet. His club season with Athletic is over, meaning he will not be able to help their push for European football, but in theory, he should still be back in time for Spain’s warm-up games with Iraq and Peru in early June. Williams has a ‘moderate’ hamstring injury, and is expected to be out for three weeks, which should be sufficiently short to keep him in Luis de la Fuente’s plans.
Replacements lining up behind him
The same outlet also reveal that several alternatives have been included in Luis de la Fuente’s 55-man longlist for the World Cup. Those include Osasuna’s Victor Munoz, Rayo Vallecano’s Jorge de Frutos and Villarreal playmaker Alberto Moleiro. All three can operate off the left side, and in Munoz’s case, he impressed in the most recent Spain call-up, scoring on debut. De Frutos has been in two previous squads this season as well, while La Roja will be familiar with Moleiro from his appearances in the under-21s.
