Barcelona teenager Gavi has been called up by Spain head coach Luis Enrique for the first time ahead of the upcoming Nations League Finals.
The La Masia product made his senior bow at club level in last month's 2-1 win over Getafe as a second-half substitute and has featured a further five times in all competitions.
At 17 years and 49 days, Gavi became the second-youngest player to make his full debut for the Catalans in last week's stalemate with Cadiz, behind only Ansu Fati (16 years, 318 days).
He is now in line to make his first appearance for Spain in next Wednesday's Nations League semi-final clash with European champions Italy at San Siro, with the winners of that match to face either Belgium or France in the final four days later.
Explaining his decision to call up the youngster, Luis Enrique said at a news conference on Thursday: "I like what I have seen from him. His level has surprised me.
"I have known about him for a long time as he's a player from La Masia. I have no doubt about his future performances.
"With there being players absent I can have a look at others. It's a shame for those who are not with us, but now others can join up.
"Gavi still has to improve, of course, but with and without the ball he can contribute to the side. Seeing what I have seen so far, he will be up to the task.
"It would be risky to put a young player in the side. Perhaps he has been called up too early, but he may still start against Italy. We will see if he can adapt to our side."
While Gavi is preparing to link up with the national side, fellow Barca youngster Fati has not been included by Luis Enrique having only just returned from a serious knee injury.
"It is a joy to see him back, and yes, with him playing again I wanted to bring him back, even if it was not to play and for him to just be with us," Luis Enrique said.
"We have to put that situation in context, and right now the best option is that he is not with us and that he continues playing and adding minutes for his club."
Gavi is not alone in earning a first call-up to the senior squad as Yeremy is also included after scoring one goal and setting three up for Villarreal in five LaLiga games this term.
Only five players have been directly involved in more goals in the Spanish top flight this term, all but one of whom have played at least one game more.
Chelsea wing-back Marcos Alonso is also part of Luis Enrique's 23-man squad, earning his first call-up in three years, but there is no place for his team-mate Kepa Arrizabalaga.
Luis Enrique has once again overlooked Real Madrid's contingent of players, while Alvaro Morata, Gerard Moreno, Dani Olmo and Raul Albiol are nursing injuries.
Ander Herrera and Brahim Diaz, who have been in good form for Paris Saint-Germain and Milan respectively, are also left out.
Spain squad:
David de Gea (Manchester United), Robert Sanchez (Brighton and Hove Albion), Unai Simon (Athletic Bilbao); Aymeric Laporte (Manchester City), Cesar Azpilicueta (Chelsea), Eric Garcia (Manchester City), Gavi (Barcelona), Inigo Martinez (Athletic Bilbao), Koke (Atletico Madrid), Marcos Alonso (Chelsea), Mikel Merino (Real Sociedad), Pau Torres (Villarreal), Pedro Porro (Sporting CP), Sergio Reguilon (Tottenham); Pedri (Barcelona), Rodri (Manchester City), Sergio Busquets (Barcelona); Ferran Torres (Manchester City), Marcos Llorente (Atletico Madrid), Mikel Oyarzabal (Real Sociedad), Pablo Fornals (West Ham), Pablo Sarabia (Sporting CP), Yeremy (Villarreal).
Venezia win a boost for Liverpool and Inter clashes, says Fonseca
Paulo Fonseca believes Milan gained a much-needed confidence boost from their 4-0 win over Venezia with big clashes against Liverpool and Inter coming up.
The 51-year-old had already come under pressure after a lacklustre start to life at Milan, with two draws and a defeat in their opening three games.
However, a comfortable home victory over Venezia eased some of that, as Milan scored four goals in the opening 30 minutes of a match for the first time since October 1958.
"Our season already started four rounds ago, we dropped points and need to recover lost ground, but it was important to win and to win like this. It gives the players confidence to keep growing," Fonseca told Sky Sports Italia.
While Saturday's victory offered some relief for the Portuguese coach, the real test awaits when Milan host Liverpool in their Champions League opener on Tuesday, followed by a derby against Inter next weekend.
"I have to be honest, I've already started thinking about both games against Liverpool and Inter. I realise the importance of the derby. Liverpool will be very difficult, but I cannot deny I have already started studying Inter, too," Fonseca said.
"I know what it means to the fans, we are working to have good performances in both matches."
Fonseca denied that recent protests from fans, including banners placed in the stands just before kick-off warning that things needed to turn around quickly, threw him off balance.
"I think as a coach that I have to deal with these situations with balance, stay focused on my work and ignore everything around us," he said.
"Milan is a club that always has the pressure to win. If we coaches don't want this pressure, then we shouldn’t be coaches."
LA Galaxy 4-2 Los Angeles FC: Hosts claim playoff spot with stunning second-half comeback
LA Galaxy stunned derby rivals Los Angeles FC on Saturday with a superb second-half comeback to seal a 4-2 victory.
They overturned a 2-0 half-time lead with four unanswered goals around Lewis O'Brien's sending-off, becoming the first team in the Western Conference to clinch a playoff spot.
Mateusz Bogusz gambled by peeling away to the back post and was in the right place to head Denis Bouanga's deflected cross into the back of the net after just four minutes.
Just 11 minutes later, Bouanga made another driving run down the left and went for goal himself, drilling a low shot past John McCarthy from a tight angle. They could have had a third before the break, but Olivier Giroud's half-volley struck the inside of the post.
Dejan Joveljic got his first, rifling into the roof of the net after a wonderful turn, and just two minutes later, Edwin Cerrillo scored a stunning goal of his own, beating Hugo Lloris from distance by curling it in off the outside of his boot.
Joveljic's second was opportunistic – he stuck out a leg to help Riqui Puig's strike past a wrong-footed Lloris from just in front of the goal line.
O'Brien was then shown a straight red card for a lunging challenge on Miki Yamane before Puig rounded off the scoring with a whipped effort into the near post.
Data Debrief: Home advantage
To use an old cliche, it was a game of two halves, with LA Galaxy proving just why they are top of the table, and eight points clear of LAFC, in a brilliant second 45 minutes.
However, this is the first time they have won after trailing at half-time in MLS since March 24 against Sporting Kansas City, which they won 3-2, ending a seven-game run.
The Galaxy have now won 11 of their last 12 regular-season matches at Dignity Health Sports Park (D1), including the last nine in a row.
Kompany: Too early for top spot to mean anything to Bayern
Bayern Munich went top of the Bundesliga with a 6-1 demolition of Holstein Kiel on Saturday, but it means little to Vincent Kompany as they look to reclaim their dominance in the domestic league.
Bayern's stranglehold of the German top-flight was broken last season with Bayer Leverkusen winning the title in a record-breaking undefeated run, and the Bavarians are eager to restore order this season.
Bayern are on a maximum nine points with three wins, two ahead of Borussia Dortmund and RB Leipzig, after Harry Kane scored a hat-trick in their win at Kiel.
They enjoyed an explosive opening to the match, netting three times in the first 13 minutes as Kiel made a nightmare start peppered with defensive errors, en route to a fourth straight win in all competitions this season under Kompany.
"I have said that this is just three games. I know, I know, for Bayern it is always important [to be in top spot] but it is three games at the moment," Kompany told a press conference.
"Today it was good and then Tuesday must be good again and then again, and that's the way it goes again.
"If we continue as we do now, maybe at the end of the season... I don't even want to say it. We just have to keep going."
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