🇧🇪 Matías Fernández-Pardo gives Belgium his final yes, snubs Spain

🇧🇪 Matías Fernández-Pardo gives Belgium his final yes, snubs Spain

The talented forward, courted on as many as four occasions by Spain’s youth national teams, has ultimately decided to represent Belgium at international level.

The saga surrounding Matías Fernández-Pardo’s international future has come to an end. Despite the persistence of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), which called up the winger on as many as four occasions for the Under-21 side, the player has turned down the offer to wear the shirt of the "Red Devils".

Fernández-Pardo, who currently plays for Lille after his spell at Gent, was one of the names highlighted in red by the coaching staff in Las Rozas. His versatility and ability to beat defenders made him a luxury asset for Santi Denia’s system, and the coach tried unsuccessfully to persuade him to join the "La Rojita" project.

This decision is a setback for the RFEF’s plan to recruit dual-nationality talent. Spain therefore loses one of the most promising gems in European football, who this year is already showing flashes of his quality in demanding competitions such as France’s Ligue 1.

From now on, Matías Fernández-Pardo’s path will be tied to Belgium. The young forward joins a new generation of Belgian footballers looking to return the country to the world elite after the end of its previous "golden era." Spain will now have to look for alternatives in a position Fernández-Pardo seemed destined to fill.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.