Mata in for Iniesta

Mata in for Iniesta
(AFP) Tuesday 24 March 2009
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Spain coach Vicente Del Bosque has replaced injured Andres Iniesta with uncapped Valencia winger Juan Mata for the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™ qualifiers against Turkey at home on Saturday and away four days later.

Iniesta injured his thigh on Sunday during Barcelona's 6-0 thrashing of Malaga in a Spanish league match and is expected to be sidelined for two weeks. Mata has been a regular fixture at Valencia since he joined the club from Real Madrid's youth team in 2007.

Del Bosque included the 20-year-old in his squad for Spain's 3-0 friendly victory against Chile in November last year, but the winger did not feature in the match.

The European champions have not lost a game since going down 1-0 to Romania in a friendly in Cadiz in November 2006. They top their qualifying group, with four wins from four games, and have only conceded one goal in their last ten matches.