Cesc Fabregas has admitted he was frustrated not to get on the field in Spain's 1-0 defeat by Switzerland on Wednesday.
The Arsenal midfielder has been the subject of intense speculation regarding his future in England, with former club Barcelona desperate to bring the 23-year-old back to the side he left as a 16-year-old academy product.
Despite his standing as one of the world's finest playmakers, Fabregas has often been in the shadow of the likes of Xavi, Andres Iniesta, Sergio Busquets and Xabi Alonso in the international squad, who are favoured by coach Vicente del Bosque.
Spain headed into the World Cup in South Africa strongly fancied to win the tournament for the first time, but they were stunned by a gritty Swiss side who nullified their threat and hit them on the counter-attack with Gelson Fernandes' winner shortly after the half-time interval.
Fabregas was overlooked on the bench, with Del Bosque opting for Jesus Navas, Fernando Torres and Pedro Rodriguez instead.
Despite his omission, Fabregas insisted he would carry on with his job regardless, respecting the fact that the Spaniards have so many quality options to choose from.
"I will not say 'I'm angry or I don't care about not playing'," said Fabregas.
"I will go through my anger by doing my best on the training ground and proving that I'm ready to do my job.
"I don't have any regrets. I do not play as much as I want but it's normal that the coach chooses the others.
"There is a lot of quality here and everybody deserves to play.
"It's normal that I want to play more, right? Football is my life and I have been fighting all season to be here and help the team with my best."
