Lamine Yamal has returned to team training for Spain four days before their World Cup opener.
The Barcelona star has not played since suffering a hamstring injury while scoring a penalty in a win over Celta Vigo on April 22.
But he was back with Luis de la Fuente’s group on Thursday as Spain gear up for their clash with Cape Verde on Monday.
It has been reported by Diario Sport that Spain are planning for Yamal to play 15-20 minutes against Cape Verde. He is expected to play a minimum of 30 minutes against Saudi Arabia and then start in their Group H finale against Uruguay.
Yamal has won 23 caps for Spain, scoring six goals, including a stunner in La Roja’s Euro 2024 semi-final win over France. Spain went on to beat England 2-1 in the final, with Yamal named Young Player of the Tournament.
With Spain the clear favourites to win the World Cup for a second time, 18-year-old Yamal is among the leading contenders for the Golden Ball.
His anticipated absence from the starting XI will likely have little impact on a game against Cape Verde that Spain are expected to win comfortably. De la Fuente has several options to replace Yamal on the right wing, with Alex Baena, Victor Munoz, Yeremy Pino and Ferran Torres among them.
Mikel Oyarzabal can play on the right but is expected to lead the line through the middle. Nico Williams, another who can play on the right as well as the left, is set to start from the bench, having dealt with a lingering groin injury for much of the season.
