Lamine Yamal Had Started All 20 of Barcelona and Spain's Games — a Right-Knee Knock From the Atlético Win Keeps Him Out of Prague, and Liverpool's Víctor Muñoz Gets the Call

Lamine Yamal had started every one of Barcelona's and Spain's 20 games this season. The streak ends in Prague. The Spanish federation (RFEF) said Monday that the 19-year-old reported discomfort in his right knee after Sunday's 2-1 win at Atlético Madrid, underwent tests and will stay in Barcelona to continue his recovery, so he will miss Thursday's Nations League game against Czechia. Liverpool winger Víctor Muñoz, left out of Luis de la Fuente's original squad, was called in the same day.

The RFEF statement was short and careful. Yamal "reported discomfort in his right knee after last night's match," and "after undergoing tests it has been decided that he will remain in Barcelona to continue his recovery process." Real Sociedad captain Mikel Oyarzabal, who did not play against Rayo Vallecano on Sunday, is "in the final phase of a flu" and will finish recovering in San Sebastián.

Both players are expected to join the squad "in the coming days" so they are available for England on Sunday, Nov. 15, at the Metropolitano, the same stadium where Yamal felt the knee. The federation added that its medical staff is in "permanent contact" with both clubs' doctors to follow the players day by day.

There was no sign of the knock during the game itself. Yamal played the full 90 minutes at Atlético and set up Fermín López's winner, the goal that sent Barcelona three points clear of Real Madrid at the top of La Liga.

The number that matters here is 20. According to ESPN, Yamal has started all 20 of his games for club and country in 2026-27, with 17 goals and 13 assists, amid growing calls for his minutes to be managed.

That debate is not new, and it has history between these two camps. Last season, while Yamal was dealing with a recurring groin problem, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick accused De la Fuente of "not taking care" of him in September, and the RFEF later complained about a lack of communication from Barcelona when the player withdrew from the November internationals.

De la Fuente seemed to see this week's problem comming. Asked about workload when he named his 27-man squad on Friday, he said, per EFE: "We anticipate what may be demanded of us. We always think about that, about trying to balance the load of minutes and efforts as much as possible, but then football sometimes makes you take decisions on the fly that you hadn't planned." Keeping Yamal in Barcelona, rather than bringing him to Las Rozas for treatment, is the kind of decision both sides can live with.

Muñoz's call-up is a small U-turn. The 23-year-old was part of Spain's World Cup-winning squad last summer without playing a minute, then earned his five caps in the September-October window, the last of them on Oct. 6 against Croatia in Split. De la Fuente left him out of this week's list.

He made the case for himself 24 hours before the phone rang. Coming off the bench at Selhurst Park on Sunday, Muñoz drove down the right and played the ball across the box for Liverpool's third goal, which Florian Wirtz laid off for Alexander Isak in the 89th minute of a 3-1 win over Crystal Palace. Andoni Iraola singled out that second-half move afterward as an example of his attackers sharing the ball: "they have not been selfish in the finishing."

Muñoz was due to arrive at the Ciudad del Fútbol in Las Rozas on Monday night, too late for the squad's first open training session at 7 p.m. local time. Spain also had to replace Ander Barrenetxea, injured in Real Sociedad's win over Rayo, with Jorge de Frutos.

Spain lead Group A3 with 12 points from four games; England are second with nine. A win in Prague, against a Czech side with no points that Spain beat 3-1 in Oviedo, and a draw with England on Sunday would clinch first place, which brings home advantage in the March quarterfinals. The top two in the group advance.

So the real question this week is not Thursday. If Yamal's knee settles, De la Fuente gets a rested version of his best player for the game that decides the group, and Barcelona's most-used player finally sits out a game. If it doesn't, the first Sunday in Madrid without him will tell both coaches more than any statement has.