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London's "Arsenal" midfielder Francescas Fabregas and Brazil's Marcos Senna, who recently received Spanish citizenship while representing "Villarreal," have been included in the Spanish national team lineup for friendly matches against Ivory Coast scheduled for next week.
Eighteen-year-old F. Fabregas is considered the main candidate to replace "Barcelona" star Xavi at this year's World Cup in Germany, as Xavi may not recover in time from a serious knee ligament injury.
Meanwhile, Brazilian M. Senna, who recently acquired Spanish citizenship, has been unquestionably one of the best players for "Villarreal" in the last two seasons, helping the "Yellow Submarine" team to secure third place in the Spanish championship last season and reach the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League this year.
After a break, La Coruna's "Deportivo" left-back Joan Capdevila and impressive form currently shown by Madrid's "Real" midfielder Guti have been invited back to the national team. However, London's "Chelsea" left-back Asier Del Horno, who received a red card in Wednesday's UEFA Champions League quarterfinal match, was not included in the national team lineup.
The team captain and top scorer Raul has still not been called up to the national team after a serious knee injury, which he has been recovering from for three months and has not played a full game for Madrid's "Real" from start to finish.
In the 22-player list, three teams have four representatives each: "Liverpool," Madrid's "Real," and "Valencia." Meanwhile, the leading team in the Spanish championship, "Barcelona," and "Deportivo" have only one representative each. These teams are followed by Sevilla's "Betis" and London's "Arsenal," each with two representatives, and Madrid's "Atletico," with three representatives.
Spain will host the silver medalists of the Africa Cup of Nations, Ivory Coast, who also qualified for the World Cup on Wednesday.
As they prepare for the World Cup, Spaniards will also play friendly matches against Russia, African champions Egypt, and Croatia or Slovenia.
Spain's national team lineup for friendly matches against Ivory Coast
Goalkeepers: Iker Casillas (Real Madrid), Pepe Reina (Liverpool);
Defenders: Carles Puyol (Barcelona), Carlos Marchena (Valencia), Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid), Pablo Ibanez (Atletico Madrid), Juanito (Real Betis), Michel Salgado (Real Madrid), Joan Capdevila (Deportivo), Antonio Lopez (Atletico Madrid);
Midfielders: Xabi Alonso (Liverpool), Luis Garcia (Liverpool), David Albelda (Valencia), Marcos Senna (Villarreal), Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal), Ruben Baraja (Valencia), Guti (Real Madrid), Joaquin (Real Betis);
Forwards: Fernando Torres (Atletico Madrid), David Villa (Valencia), Jose Antonio Reyes (Arsenal), Fernando Morientes (Liverpool).
