Spain is all but set to defend their World Cup title in Brazil and they have reportedly announced their 23-man squad for the upcoming tournament. With a plethora of talent at his disposal, manager Vicente Del Bosque had some tough choices to make but he ended up picking up the players most pundits expected to fly to Brazil.
However, there were some notable choices. Fernando Torres - who's coming off another poor year at Chelsea - got the nod over Fernando Llorente, who was very productive in his first season with Juventus. Alvaro Negredo was another forward who was left off the final list after cooling off in the final months of the season with Manchester City.
On the positive side for Del Bosque, Diego Costa managed to make the cut and will be included in the final list. However, his fitness is a mystery and it's not known for sure how he will respond after leaving the Champions League final with an injury.
Dani Carvajal, Alberto Moreno, Iturraspe, Jesus Navas, Fernando Llorente, Thiago Alcantara and Alvaro Negredo were the seven players discarded. Not many surprises as Thiago was injured, Navas was unable to pass a physical test in recent days and the other players didn't have much of a chance to make the cut.
Spain is the seeded team in Group B and will have to play against Holland, Chile and Australia. They are expected to advance, but any sort of mistake can hurt their chances quickly.
Spain's World Cup official squad:
Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Pepe Reina (Napoli), David De Gea (Manchester United)
Defenders: Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Raul Albiol (Napoli), Gerard Pique (FC Barcelona), Juanfran (Atletico Madrid), Javi Martinez (Bayern Munich), Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Jordi Alba (FC Barcelona)
Midfielders: Koke (Atletico Madrid), Xavi (FC Barcelona), Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), Andres Iniesta (FC Barcelona), Sergio Busquets (FC Barcelona), Juan Mata (Manchester United), David Silva (Manchester City), Cesc Fabregas (FC Barcelona), Santi Cazorla (Arsenal)
Forwards: Pedro (FC Barcelona), Fernando Torres (Chelsea), David Villa (New York Red Bulls), Diego Costa (Atletico Madrid)