ALVARO MORATA and Dani Carvajal started Spain’s World Cup opener on the bench due to the sniffles.
The duo – who are regular starters for their respective clubs and country – were left out of the starting XI for Wednesday’s romp against Costa Rica.
Their absences raised questions as neither of them had been dealing with any injuries going into Qatar 2022.
But it was later revealed the duo had caught colds using the air conditioners in their hotel rooms to keep cool.
talkSPORTs Nigel Adderley said: “They have missed a couple of players, Morata and Carvajal suffering with colds due to the air conditioning around their hotel.
“Neither have made the starting line-up.”
Air conditioning is a necessity in Qatar this time of year as temperatures reach upwards of 30 degrees Celsius.
The soaring temperatures led to all the stadiums being used in the tournament having air conditioning units installed.
Morata and Carvajal’s absences mattered little as the Spaniards ended up blowing away Costa Rica.
Luis Enrique’s side registered what will likely be the biggest win of the tournament, hitting the Costa Ricans for seven without reply.
HOW TO GET FREE BETS ON THE WORLD CUP
Barcelona midfielder Gavi was the star of the show, in which he became Spain’s youngest-ever goalscorer.
Enrique was quick to sing the 18-year-old’s praises, saying: “I hope he’s going and playing every time better and trying to be aggressive with and without [the] ball.
“He’s unique, very different because he’s 18 now, but he has the personality of an experienced player.
“It is a pleasure to play with the boy, because he is a boy.
“He needs a bit of calm sometimes but we are very happy to have him in the team.
“I think he’s going to be one of the stars of football.”
Spain will be back in action on Sunday evening, facing struggling 2014 champions Germany in one of the ties of the tournament.
