Spain's Nico Williams injured in Athletic game ahead of WC

Spain's World Cup roster appeared to take another blow when midfielder Nico Williams ​departed Sunday's La Liga game for ‌Athletic Club with an apparent left leg injury.

Williams was replaced in the 36th minute ​against Valencia with a distraught look ​on his face. He was later on ⁠the bench with a pad on ​his left hamstring as Valencia finished ​off a 1-0 victory.

Williams, 23, 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.

Spain already has to worry about midfielder Lamine Yamal, who went down with a torn hamstring last month while ​playing for ​Barcelona.

Spain was ⁠drawn into Group H of this summer's World Cup in ​North America. The team will ​play ⁠its first two games at Atlanta, facing Cape Verde on 15 June and Saudi ⁠Arabia ​on 21 June. Spain ​will play its final group game against Uruguay on 26 ​June at Guadalajara, Mexico.