Thomas Bjørn has issued a staunch defence of Sergio García’s inclusion in Europe’s Ryder Cup team despite admitting he felt “sick to my stomach” when informing Rafa Cabrera-Bello he had been overlooked for an appearance in France later this month.

García’s inclusion as one of Europe’s four wildcard picks – Henrik Stenson, Ian Poulter and Paul Casey join the 2017 Masters champion – is by far the most controversial because of poor recent form.

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García will become the first European player to feature in a Ryder Cup despite missing every major cut in the year of the biennial event. Eyebrows were also raised because the 38-year-old opted not to play in European Tour events leading up to both the conclusion of the automatic qualifying process and Bjørn announcing his captain’s choices.

Bjørn has admitted García’s off-course influence was the defining factor; five rookies had earlier claimed automatic berths for Europe. The Dane clearly regards that as a risk if not offset by Ryder Cup specialism. García has represented Europe eight times before, winning 22.5 points.

“I can’t pinpoint what a European Team room is,” Bjørn said. “I can’t tell you exactly what it is that makes it great but one thing I know is: Sergio is right at the centre of it, every single time. He makes that team so much better.

“So he has so many qualities, not just as a player, because he is a world-class player. I also think that this is going to make everybody else around him, around the team, better. You need to make the team work. You need to make that environment correct for everybody and he is right at the centre of doing that.

“We need people that can rise to the occasion, that can up their game and that can make the man standing next to him better. Sergio does that. He’s the one that stands up and gives a speech to the others and he has done that in the past. He’s the one that stands up on Thursday night and rallies the troops. He’s also the one that on Saturday night, when you’re four points ahead, that goes ‘OK, this is by no means won yet’, because he knows that. He’s been there.”

When pressed on whether García would have been picked virtually regardless of individual results, Bjørn replied: “I felt like I had to go a long, long way to leave him out in my mind. I wanted him there.”

Europe’s captain did, though, accept reasoning attached to widespread scepticism. “In sport people tend to go with just performance and that’s so easy to measure,” he added. “So that would be from the outside. I understand that’s the way people look at it but when you sit in my role … Padraig Harrington puts it best, he always says: ‘It’s not about picking the best players, it’s about picking the best team.’ And that’s what the picks are for.

“It is so much more big than you could ever imagine. You need experience around you, and not just during those days that you are there, but from now until then.”

Bjørn did not hide from the fact his call to Cabrera-Bello was by far the trickiest of six he made to unsuccessful players on Tuesday. Cabrera-Bello not only performed admirably in the 2016 Ryder Cup loss but survived for the weekend of each major this year. The 34-year-old, who is a place above García in the world rankings, finished in a share of seventh at last weekend’s Dell Technologies Championship in Boston.

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“Rafa, that was hard for him to understand,” Bjørn said. “It was hard for him to take in. It’s such a privilege to be Ryder Cup captain but any great job in the world also comes with some really tough decisions. That is not something I envy anybody having to do in the future. I felt sick to my stomach because I think the world of the bloke, I really do.”

The United States team is odds-on to retain the trophy at Le Golf National. High-profile successes are key to that, with the combined tally of major wins sitting at 31 against eight in favour of the team captained by Jim Furyk.

Poulter was amongst the first to cite García’s selection as logical. “He brings an incredible amount of experience,” explained the Englishman. “He brings a lot of points and an incredible amount of passion to the team. There are five rookies and it’s hard to explain to the rookies how they are going to feel and how big a stage the Ryder Cup really is. So you definitely need players like Sergio in the team who can help these guys to be able to feel comfortable.

“The Ryder Cup is extremely different to normal regulation stroke play, even to other team events. Sergio is there for his experience, his passion, his drive, his motivation, and he’s there for a reason. Everybody that made the team are extremely hungry players. I think we are up for the challenge.”