Cesc Fabregas says he was irritated to hear Sergio Ramos question his commitment to the Spain team and rang his international teammate to set him straight.
Chelsea boss Jose Mourinho had said Fabregas was not fit to feature for Spain for their recent fixtures against Belarus and Germany due to a hamstring problem, but he was asked to travel to Madrid for tests. The Spanish FA said the "MRI scan showed a clear improvement compared to that done by his club's medical services" but that he was still suffering "discomfort" and would return to Chelsea.
Blues striker Diego Costa was also left out of the last Spain squad, with Mourinho having complained at length about the centre-forward returning injured from the previous international break.
Ramos entered the debate by saying it appeared both Fabregas and Costa were fit enough to play for their clubs but not their country, with Mourinho's former player at Real Madrid suggesting this showed a lack of commitment to the national cause.
Fabregas, who was part of the Spain sides that won Euro 2008, World Cup 2010 and Euro 2012, told "El Partido de las Doce" that the injury had been serious enough that to play would have risked a long-term injury such as that suffered by Madrid midfielder Luka Modric while on duty with Croatia.
"It pissed me off that there were doubts about my commitment," Fabregas said. "Of course it pissed me off. I have played many games and been in many squads without playing. I have 94 caps with Spain -- for nine years I have always, always come, and been smiling from ear to ear.
"I had tendonitis in my left hamstring. If I played, what happened to Modric could have happened to me. I told Ramos that he could call me on the phone and tell me to my face -- I said we had played together since the under-21s. There is no need to send messages through the press."
Fabregas said that, after a frank conversation over the phone, the pair had put their differences behind them.
"I felt offended, and I told Sergio what I thought, but after talking on the phone everything is good," he said.
Fabregas and Costa were both selected for Chelsea's first game back after the international break, at home to West Brom in the Premier League. After that game, Mourinho nevertheless criticised Ramos' remarks, saying his former charge was a good player but not a medical expert.
Asked in Marca to respond to these latest comments, Spain boss Vicente del Bosque said he would prefer it if each individual concentrated on their own business.
"I have nothing to say about this," Del Bosque said. "We rate Mourinho as the great coach he is, but I believe everyone should just talk about their own house, their own job, their own tasks, nothing more."