A fresh blow for the Spain national team ahead of the England clash

Spain have been dealt a fresh blow ahead of their eagerly awaited clash with England, after Alex Grimaldo left the team's camp in the city of Las Rozas due to a fever, ruling him out of the calculations of head coach Luis de la Fuente for the upcoming match.

And the Royal Spanish Football Federation confirmed the left-back had been dropped from the squad and sent home to recover from the flu, having been unable to continue training with his team-mates.

Grimaldo left the camp on Saturday after symptoms appeared during his time with the national team. The coaching staff opted not to keep him with the group out of concern for his health.

The timing stings. It comes right before the clash with England, robbing De la Fuente of one of his left-back options and leaving him to lean on the players already at his disposal.

The Bayer Leverkusen man couldn't finish the final training session. Luis de la Fuente asked him to stop because of how he was feeling.

Spain's medical staff then assessed the player and monitored his condition before making the call for him to head home and complete his recovery away from group training.

De la Fuente won't draft in a replacement to cover the absence. The national team will press on with the squad as it is.

Marc Cucurella now looks the frontrunner to start at left-back against England, with Grimaldo out and no new face called up.