The Moroccan striker Marwan Sanad continues to be absent from Athletic Bilbao's squad, as he has been excluded once again from the upcoming match against Deportivo Alaves in La Liga at the Mendizorrotza Stadium. This will be the fourth consecutive match that the player has missed from the team's list.

The team's coach, Ernesto Valverde, has called up 24 players for this match, as the team's roster is full again with the recovery of some injured players at the Lezama training center. He decided to exclude Marwan and Iguelos, while Bravos is still in the gradual recovery phase, given the numerous options available to the coaching staff.

Marwan had recently returned to the squad in the Getafe match after recovering from a knee injury that had sidelined him for a long time, and he played for a few minutes then. However, since that time, he has missed the matches against Villarreal, Osasuna, Atletico Madrid, and now Alaves. Valverde confirmed that the decision is "purely technical" and that the player has recovered well, but he is simply an option within the competition for positions.

Nevertheless, there are no issues with Marwan according to the coach, who emphasized that the door remains open for everyone based on readiness and technical choices. However, the player's continued situation makes his presence in the World Cup unlikely.