Spain Show Depth vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina, but Euro 2016 Preparations Look Messy

It’s in a single position where all of this is encapsulated, and on Sunday evening, Spain manager Vicente del Bosque put it into words. 

“We have two days until I name my list of 23 players,” he said at his post-match press conference following his team’s 3-1 win over Bosnia and Herzegovina in Switzerland. “While we are waiting to hear from the medics, [Hector] Bellerin stays with us.”

The medical team Del Bosque was referring to is the one evaluating Real Madrid’s Dani Carvajal. The previous night in Milan, the right-back limped off at the San Siro during his team’s victory over Atletico Madrid in the UEFA Champions League final, tears flowing in the fear of it—that not only would he miss the decisive period of the final, but that his Euro 2016 campaign might already be over too. 

For Del Bosque, such a situation is emblematic of the wider position he and his team are in. Ahead of this summer’s UEFA European Championship, Spain’s depth is extraordinary and the manager’s options are vast, but concurrently, La Roja’s preparations also look messy and problematic for a team expected to seriously contend. 

On Sunday at the AFG Arena in St. Gallen, it was Hector Bellerin who completed 90 minutes at right-back. He was impressive, too, but that shouldn’t really have come as a surprise. 

After all, Bellerin is fresh off a sparkling campaign with Arsenal in the Premier League, one which saw him voted into the Professional Footballers’ Association Team of the Year. At just 21 years of age, the Catalan is already among the world’s leading players at his position, and yet at national level, he’s on standby, not even included in Del Bosque’s provisional 25-man squad for Euro 2016. 

In front of him: Carvajal and Atletico’s Juanfran. 

As depth goes, it’s remarkable. And it’s not just at right-back where it’s evident. 

Against Bosnia and Herzegovina, Del Bosque put out a starting lineup that featured national-team stalwarts like Cesc Fabregas, David Silva and Pedro; that included the experienced and in-form Nolito, Bruno Soriano, Aritz Aduriz and Mikel San Jose; that had the ever-reliable Cesar Azpilicueta; that contained rising stars like Bellerin and Marco Asensio.

And on the bench were Denis Suarez (wanted by Barcelona) and Inaki Williams (release clause: €50 million). 

For Spain, it was staggering that a team of …

continue reading in source www.bleacherreport.com