Spain’s Nico Williams sustains hamstring injury before World Cup

Spain appear to have taken another ⁠blow ⁠before the World Cup when midfielder Nico Williams departed Athletic Club’s La Liga game ⁠with an apparent hamstring injury.

Williams sustained the injury before half-time in Athletic Bilbao’s 1-0 loss to Valencia at home on Sunday, prompting concerns for European champions Spain as the countdown to the global tournament hits the one-month mark.

The 23-year-old went off with a distraught look on his face and was later seen on the bench with a pad on his left ‌hamstring. He had already been sidelined for several weeks earlier this year because of another injury.

Williams has scored six goals in 30 appearances with Spain’s national team since 2022. He has six goals with seven assists in ⁠32 games for Athletic Club ⁠this season.

His injury has compounded Spain’s worries as they were already sweating over star forward Lamine Yamal’s fitness. Yamal went down with a torn hamstring ⁠last month while playing for Barcelona.

Spain are ⁠in Group H ⁠at the World Cup in North America. They will play their first two games in Atlanta, ‌Georgia, facing Cape Verde on June 15 and Saudi Arabia on June 21. The final group game for the 2010 champions is on June 26 against Uruguay in Guadalajara, Mexico.

“He was limping a lot. He hadn’t felt that type of pain before,” Williams’s Athletic teammate Inaki Williams said. “It’s concerning, considering the moment we are in right now. Let’s wait and hope for the best possible scenario.”

Athletic did not immediately release details about Williams’s injury.

Spain coach Luis de La Fuente is to announce a 55-name preliminary squad for the World Cup this week.