David Villa ruled out of Euro 2012

Barcelona: Barcelona have confirmed that David Villa will not be going to Euro 2012 with Spain after losing his battle for fitness following a broken leg. The striker's inclusion in Vicente del Bosque's final 23-man squad has been in doubt since he fractured his tibia during the Blaugrana's Club World Cup semi-final win over Al-Sadd in December.

However, the former Valencia man had returned to training in the past month and after stepping up his rehabilitation, the 30-year-old had been hoping to feature in the Copa del Rey final versus Athletic Bilbao on May 25. Following further analysis of the forward's condition, Barcelona team doctor Ricard Pruna and his medical team have advised that Villa should not be selected for Spain ahead of the European Championship in June.

Taking to Twitter to reveal the news to his fans, Villa wrote: "I tried until the very end but I wouldn't be able to be at 100 per cent for the Euros. I called the national team manager to tell him, it was the honest thing to do."

Barcelona's medical staff have decided that the striker is not fit enough to feature for Spain in Euros.

"Thank you all for your support. I will keep on working to be back and play with Barca and the national team as soon as possible."

The news will come as a big blow for supporters of La Furia Roja who believed the attacker would be added to Spain's squad after Barcelona's cup final on Friday.

Villa is Spain's all-time leading scorer with 51 goals in 82 appearances, with the Langreo native winning the Golden Boot when the Iberian nation won the European Championship four years ago.

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