Football
Spain shrug off Catalonia crisis to qualify for World Cup
9 years agoSpain team applaud at the end of the World Cup 2018 qualifier football match Spain vs Albania at the Jose Rico Perez stadium in Alicante on October 6, 2017. JOSE JORDAN / AFP
Pique made his 92nd appearance at international level just days after voting in a referendum on Catalan independence deemed illegal by the Spanish government and marred by a police crackdown that left hundreds needing medical attention.