Grimaldo, pursued by bad luck with Spanish national team

Atlético Madrid left-back Grimaldo ruled out of Spain's Sunday clash with England at the Metropolitano due to a flu-like illness.

Alejandro Grimaldo is set to miss Spain's Nations League match against England on Sunday at the Metropolitano after missing Saturday's training session with a flu-like illness. Luis de la Fuente must cut five players from his 27-man squad, and Grimaldo appears certain to be among those dropped.

This continues a frustrating pattern for the Atlético Madrid defender with the national team. In September, he suffered left quadriceps discomfort during warm-up before a Croatia fixture and had to return to Madrid. Grimaldo's international career has been marked by misfortune despite his strong club form: his debut came in November 2023 at age 28 after years of success at Benfica and Bayer Leverkusen.

He featured in just 114 minutes across two matches at Euro 2024 and did not play in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers, with Marc Cucurella preferred at left-back. An injury scare in October 2025 from a Leverkusen teammate also threatened his availability for a previous call-up.