Cesc Fabregas Slams Sergio Ramos in Expletive-Filled Reaction to Spain Jibe

Chelsea midfielder Cesc Fabregas has responded to criticism from international teammate Sergio Ramos regarding his absence from Spain's recent internationals, revealing he called the Real Madrid star to question his comments.

Ramos insinuated that Fabregas and teammate Diego Costa may not be putting in the same effort to play for country as club, with both having withdrawn from the Spain squad despite not missing a game for the Blues.

ESPN FC reports Fabregas telling radio station Cadena Cope:

"

Yes, I felt that I was the one being alluded to and I already told Sergio what I thought. We spoke by telephone and everything is fine. It pisses you off when your commitment is questioned, of course it pisses you off.

There have been a lot of matches and training camps I have turned up for without playing. I have made 94 appearances for Spain and for nine years I have always come, always. And with a smile from ear to ear.

I said to Ramos he can call me on the telephone and say it to my face. I told him we have been playing together since the Under-21s and there is no need to send messages in the media.

"

Ramos and Fabregas have no history of such disagreements, making the former's comments particularly resonate. The ESPN report points out that Spain manager Vicente del Bosque confirmed that national team doctors picked up no obvious injury.

Fabregas, though, has not been left alone to fight his corner with club manager Jose Mourinho quick to step in on his behalf and chastise his former player Ramos.

Per the Mirror's Darren Lewis, Mourinho commented: “Since I’ve known Sergio Ramos he has been a fantastic football player, but he is not a doctor."

Shaun Botterill/Getty Images

Incidents that suggest rifts in the Spain camp are not new, with the Real Madrid and Barcelona rivalry having previously been rumoured to spill over into national team circles. Incidents such as this famous Twitter bust-up between Gerard Pique and Alvaro Arbeloa, as covered by ESPN FC, have done little to temper such suggestions.

Fabregas can justifiably feel annoyed at his teammate's comments whether they be justifiable or not, with such issues generally better settled in private as the pair would now appear to have done.

The Spanish midfielder has been highly influential since arriving at the Bridge this summer and the following video takes a look at his evolution to this point.

While the Chelsea man's cause is not helped by having played both club games in the four days since the end of the international break, his track record of representing Spain is enough to suggest his word should be accepted when it comes to his own fitness.

Spain and Del Bosque will hope this is the end of the matter between the pair, with La Roja currently only second behind Slovakia in their Euro 2016 qualification group.

While reaching the tournament in France in 18 months time should be no issue given that the top two qualify automatically from each group, divisions between players as key as Ramos, Diego Costa and Fabregas are the last thing Del Bosque needs as he plots a changing of the guard in the Spanish side.