The soap opera saga surrounding the centre forward position in the Spanish national team has taken another twist with Diego Costa pulling out of the squad for Monday’s meeting with Macedonia through injury and being replaced by rising star Munir El Haddadi.
Costa delivered another low-key performance on the international stage in Thursday’s 1-0 defeat against France, which saw the fallen world champions achieve the unwanted statistic of failing to register a single shot on target.
The new Chelsea star, who has made a brilliant start to his Premier League career, has now made five appearances for Spain without scoring a single goal.
More worryingly, Costa has so far looked unsuited to the short-passing, possession-based style of play employed by Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque.
He has thrived under the different counter-attacking approach employed by both Chelsea and former club Atletico Madrid, but has struggled to make any impression in the tighter spaces available in Spain’s front line.
And Costa has now been denied a chance to break his international duck through injury, being forced to withdraw from the squad to face Macedonia in Valencia with a hamstring strain.
After Thursday’s no-show in Paris, boss Del Bosque admitted the striker is struggling to establish himself at international level and called upon his team-mates to help.
“We have to connect with him and understand him more,” said the veteran coach. “But he has shown what he will be capable of.”
Costa, meanwhile, took the opposite approach, putting the responsibility upon himself to change his style to become a success with the national team.
“I am the one who has to adapt,” he said. “Our game is about having a lot of the ball and controlling possession. I’ve got a lot of desire to score for Spain and I’m sure it will come.”
However, his process of integration will now be delayed following his removal from Monday’s squad with a muscle injury of undefined severity.
His replacement is a somewhat surprising choice in the form of Barcelona youngster Munir, who was playing youth team football six months ago and has since progressed with lightning speed into the Barca first team and now international football.
Munir’s selection could well have been hastened by the fact that he is also eligible for selection by Morocco, his father’s home country.
If he makes an appearance in Monday’s qualifier against Macedonia, it would rule him out of future contention for the North Africans, and a late substitute appearance could well be in Del Bosque’s thinking to seal the 19 year-old’s international future.
