Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has dropped Chelsea striker Fernando Torres and Barcelona's Pedro from his squad to face Venezuela.
Big name duo left out of squad to tackle Venezuela
Spain coach Vicente del Bosque has dropped Chelsea striker Fernando Torres and Barcelona's Pedro from his squad to face Venezuela.
Torres has endured a torrid 12 months for both club and country which has led to him being left out for the forthcoming friendly.
In 2011, Torres played seven times for his country and scored just once, but it is his form for Chelsea which has seen Del Bosque make his decision.
Torres has netted just four goals for the Premier League side this season and Spain's boss is clearly not willing to continue with him, given he has so many options at his disposal.
"He is a lad we appreciate a great deal and it pains me to leave him out but I wanted to be fair," Del Bosque told a news conference.
"Torres isn't doing well, and we've decided that in this case he won't come. It hurts me to leave out Fernando Torres, but I cannot be unfair and hold back those who have been pushing to get in."
Out in the cold
Pedro has also found himself out in the cold and again it his club form that has cost him, as he has started just nine games and scored one goal for Barcelona this season.
With Torres and Pedro left out, Del Bosque has added Valencia's leading scorer Roberto Soldado, the top scoring Spaniard in La Liga, and Athletic Bilbao's outstanding young prospect Iker Muniain to his squad.
Muniain is yet to win a cap for the senior squad, while Soldado has two caps to his name.
With Muniain joining the party, Athletic Bilbao have four players included, the same as Real Madrid. Barcelona still dominate, with eight of their players making the selection.
Spain squad:
Casillas (Real Madrid), Victor Valdes (Barcelona), Reina (Liverpool), Arbeloa (Real Madrid), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Puyol (Barcelona), Pique (Barcelona), Javi Martinez (Athletic), Jordi Alba (Valencia), Iraola (Athletic), Xavi (Barcelona), Iniesta (Barcelona), Busquets (Barcelona), Fabregas (Barcelona), Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid), David Silva (Manchester City), Cazorla (Malaga), Navas (Sevilla), Mata (Chelsea), Thiago (Barcelona), Muniain (Athletic), Soldado (Valencia), Llorente (Athletic), Negredo (Sevilla).
