Spain women’s coach Montse Tomé has cited “sporting reasons” for again leaving 2023 World Cup winner Jenni Hermoso out of her latest squad.
Tomé on Wednesday announced her roster for the upcoming UEFA Women’s Nations League games against Belgium and England.
Asked about Hermoso, who recently testified in her sexual assault case against former Spain Football Federation president Luis Rubiales, Tomé said: “The 23 players who are on the list today are the 23 best players who have to be there. All the decisions I have made and continue to make since I became a coach are down to sporting reasons.”
Tigres Femenil forward Hermoso had been omitted from the December friendlies against South Korea and France.
Tomé has previously commented on leaving Hermoso out of other Spain squads.
During her testimony in the Rubiales trial, Tomé said she had not included Hermoso in her first squad after the 2023 World Cup in order to shield the player from the media.
Tomé, nevertheless, insisted on Wednesday that Hermoso, who is Spain’s all-time top scorer, could play for the national team again.
“This is the first list of this year,” Tomé said. “There’s no door closed for the national team to any player, to players that prove with work that they want to be here.”
Hermoso’s career has not been the same since the Rubiales controversy. Spanish prosecutor Marta Durántez referenced the infamous incident that occurred during the World Cup trophy presentation in her closing arguments on Wednesday in the Rubiales trial.
“She [Hermoso] will be known as the one of the kiss, not as the player that won a World Cup,” Durántez said.
Hermoso, 34, started in Tigres’ Femenil’s 2-1 league win on Tuesday and missed a penalty.
Spain host Belgium on Feb. 21 before playing five days later at Wembley against England, the team they beat in the 2023 World Cup final.
