Spain fine-tunes preparation for World Cup with friendly against Iraq

As preparations intensify for the upcoming FIFA World Cup, European champions Spain held a training session at their National Team Headquarters in Las Rozas, Madrid, ahead of Thursday's friendly against Iraq. Following this fixture, the squad will head to Galicia for their final match on home soil before embarking on their journey to North America.

The 26-man World Cup squad, finalized on Wednesday evening, welcomes midfielders Fabián Ruiz and Martín Zubimendi, along with goalkeeper David Raya, who recently featured in Saturday's UEFA Champions League final with Arsenal. Spain, the 2010 World Cup winners, are set to kick off their campaign in Group H against Cape Verde on June 15, with subsequent matches against Saudi Arabia and Uruguay.

Coach Luis de la Fuente has confirmed that Lamine Yamal, alongside injured teammates Nico Williams and Víctor Muñoz, will not participate in Thursday's friendly. However, there is cautious optimism regarding Yamal's recovery from a torn left hamstring, as he could potentially be fit for Spain's opener.

"The plan is to stick to what we'd planned, and that schedule gave us confidence that he could be ready by June 15. There are still a few days to go, so we'll see how things actually pan out. Things are generally going very well, but there might be a day when we have to put something on hold. I don't know, I'm just speculating, but if everything continues as it has so far, he could be ready to start on the 15th, but it doesn't guarantee he'll play for that reason," said De La Fuente.