Helguera damaged the ligaments in his right knee during Real's league encounter with Villarreal on Tuesday, and will now be sidelined for at least two weeks.
Helguera's absence will come as a huge blow to Saez as the Madrid star has been a fixture in the coach's team selections since he took charge of the national side, though it hands another chance to Garcia Calvo (pictured) who Saez blooded at international level.
The 28-year-old becomes the second player in recent days to be forced out of the Spanish squad through injury, after Espanyol's Raul Tamudo withdrew with a muscular problem.
