Macedonia U21 has been dealt a big blow as David Babunski withdrew from the squad due to club obligations with Barcelona B.

Earlier today, the Macedonian federation wrote on its website that David Babunski has been withdrawn from the U21 squad for the two upcoming fixtures against Ukraine (qualifier) and Australia (friendly). The reason given was that Barcelona B plays a game during the same day when Macedonia U21 was supposed to face Ukraine. Since David is in the last year of his contract, he asked manager Blagoja Milevski to excuse him. David wants to establish himself as a regular at Barcelona B.

Babunski played the full match to open the season in Spain’s third division this past weekend, so he wants to make sure that his momentum is not slowed down in the forthcoming period. Barcelona B, by now playing in the third tier, does not follow the international break calendar. The club has a scheduled game against Espanyol B on September 5, which is also the date when Macedonia U21 meets Ukraine in an important qualifier.

Due to that scheduling conflict, Macedonia agreed to withdraw Babunski. The U21 manager, Blagoja Milevski, says that he respects David’s decision. Milevski noted that he will continue to count on David in the future, while hoping that his club ambitions will be realized with Barcelona B.

Babunski and three other “B” players trained with the first team of Barcelona on Wednesday. He has started the new season in a positive manner, but this news is a big blow to the U21 national team.