Arsenal defender Cristian Mosquera made his full international debut on Tuesday night, playing 90 minutes as Spain were held by Egypt in a friendly.
The centre-back was rewarded for his positive opening campaign in North London with his first senior call-up for this set of international fixtures. Earning his first cap with a cameo appearance off the bench against Serbia last week, Mosquera was then named in the starting eleven for the Egypt clash by Luis de la Fuente.
The Spaniards dominated the North African side for 90 minutes, but were unable to find a winner despite Hamdi Fathi being shown a late red card, as the game in Catalonia ended as a goalless stalemate.
| Cristhian Mosquera’s statistics vs Egypt | |
| Minutes Played | 90 |
| Touches | 109 |
| Passes into Final Third | 20 |
| Recoveries | 3 |
| Accurate Passes | 101/103 (98%) |
| Aerial Duels Won | 2/2 (100%) |
| Touches in Opposition Box | 5 |
What Spain thought of Cristhian Mosquera on international duty
Arsenal signed Mosquera for just £13 million in the summer, and he’s since proven to be one of the bargain buys of that transfer window. Adeptly stepping in for William Saliba on a number of occasions, the 21-year-old has already made 25 appearances across all competitions, and this form has seemingly garnered international attention.
Mosquera is now gearing himself up for the run-in, insisting last week that Arsenal are ready to win the Premier League and the Champions League, as he looks to claim the first major honour of his career.
He’s likely to start against Southampton in the FA Cup on the weekend, and he was handed a good opportunity to prepare for this quarter-final clash by de la Fuente on Tuesday. Deployed next to Real Madrid’s Dean Huijsen, with Tottenham’s Pedro Porro and Bayer Leverkusen’s Alejandro Grimaldo outside of him, Mosquera produced a steady performance for his country.
Completing over 100 passes on the night and creating three chances in the process, the former Valencia man was incredibly influential in possession for La Roja. Unsurprisingly, it appears Mosquera left those inside the Spain camp incredibly impressed.
According to Spain insider David Saavedra, Mosquera left ‘positive impressions’ with what he showed during his first two caps.
Mosquera ha dejado sensaciones muy positivas estos dos partidos. En caso de no ir al Mundial debe ser de los fijos posterior a ello. Es un perfil algo diferente pero muy necesario y complementario a lo que ya tenemos. Nivel MUY alto.
— David Saavedra / Talentos Españoles (@talento20Espano) March 31, 2026
“Mosquera has left very positive impressions in these two matches,” the UEFA B coach wrote on X.
“In case he doesn’t go to the World Cup, he should be one of the locks afterward. He’s a somewhat different profile but very necessary and complementary to what we already have. VERY high level.”
Mosquera now has a good chance of making Spain’s World Cup squad, although he faces significant competition for a spot. The likes of Huijsen, Pau Cubarsi, Aymeric Laporte and Robin Le Normand are all in the mix, and thus, the Gunners star will need to play minutes at club level between now and the end of the season to stand a chance.
How did David Raya fare for Spain against Egypt?
Not only are Spain blessed with several exceptional defenders, but de la Fuente also has a plethora of goalkeepers to pick from. Kepa Arrizabalaga and Robert Sanchez don’t even make the squad, while the Euro 2024 winning manager favours Athletic Club’s Unai Simon over David Raya and Barcelona’s Joan Garcia.
That said, Raya was given a rare opportunity to impress against Egypt. Starting ahead of Simon, the Arsenal number one kept a clean sheet before being substituted in the 62nd minute.
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This was just his 13th cap for the Spanish national team, and while the Egyptians didn’t score, Raya probably didn’t do enough to convince de la Fuente to change his mind before the World Cup.
Egypt only had one shot on target while the Gunners’ shot-stopper was on the pitch, and he kept it out comfortably. While he completed ten of his eleven passes, it wasn’t a busy game for the 30-year-old.
