David De Gea settled into his hotel room last Friday and turned on his PlayStation 4, content with his rightful ascendance to the top of his national team’s goalkeeping depth chart. After so much waiting — the 25-year-old Manchester United star has been one of the world’s best keepers for at least the last six years — De Gea was finally set to get his first start with Spain’s senior team in its Euro 2016 opener on Monday.
Then he received a news alert that threw his potential starting spot — not to mention his entire team’s preparations — into a swirling cloud of doubt.