Spaniard's hard work pays off with selection for arguably the greatest national side of all time
Miguel Michu, take a bow. Actually, do one of those little flamenco jigs you've done on occasion as a goalscoring celebration, because it's probably slightly more in-keeping with the national team you've been selected for.
Since joining for £2million ahead of last season, Michu has continued to confound critics who must surely have been expecting his performance level to drop off. I'll be honest, I was among those who were seriously dubious about his ability to maintain the blistering standard he set himself in the first few weeks of last season, but apart from a bit of a lull (which he wasn't alone in experiencing - the same could be said of the whole team) between winning the League Cup and the end of last season he's easily been our stand out performer since joining the club.
What's more, this season I'd argue he looks a much improved player. His appreciation of his role behind the striker seems to have increased dramatically and the midfield aspect to his game really is so, so much better than last year. Ball retention, key passes and other stats back this up, showing that his all-round game rivals that of almost any top-flight striker.
For his part, Michu admits to being both surprised and elated when he found out he'd been selected to replace injury victim David Villa, who's gone down with an ankle injury picked up this weekend:
"It's the best a footballer can hope for. The selection is the best team in the world, it's a privilege.
"We were on the bus because we played in the morning and I started receiving many messages, which is not normal. Then some Spanish colleagues told me, I'm very happy."
"Every Spanish footballer dreams of this and it's so difficult. Few people can wear the shirt of the best team in the world.
"There are a lot of players missing, but there are great players in the squad. Let's see if fortune is with me and I can play, although I'm already grateful to be called up.
"It's the maximum to which a footballer can aspire. The national team is the best in the world, it's a privilege.
"I'm enjoying it like a kid, these are the best players in the world and it will be complicated, but I'll try to take advantage of the opportunity."
Miguel Michu
http://sportwitness.ning.com/forum/topics/michu-says-he-s-very-happy-found-out-on-the-bus-and-is-excited-li
http://www1.skysports.com/football/news/11731/8961982?
That quote is taken from Spanish footie paper Marca (why don't we have a decent football newspaper?!), and it's not just them who are interested in this particular story. The broadsheet El Confidencial recalled that Valencia were interested in signing the forward, however baulked at the £2million asking price. Ha! How does that feel, chaps? The paper also goes on to touch on how Michu has never been afraid to ask for advice from coaches and teammates in a bid to be the best player possible, and also that he's worked his cojones off so far in his career.
No-one can argue he doesn't deserve this, and considering the two games he's been called up for are qualifiers against Belarus & Georgia it seems there's a good chance he'll feature. It really is an accolade for both the player and his parent club that he's been selected for Spain - if someone had said ten years ago we'd have a player called up by the World Cup and European Cup champions...well, you'd be questioning that person's sanity, at the very least.
Hopefully the English hierarchy can learn a thing or two from this. Roberto Soldado and Fernando Llorente have both been overlooked despite playing for "bigger teams", and the continued English refusal to acknowledge players plying their trade at clubs outside the boy's-club-esque top six shows the difference between the two outlooks. One is progressive, and has resulted in unheralded success, and one is archaic and hasn't achieved anything in fourty-seven years. Work out which one is which.
Hopefully Michu will be rewarded for all his hard work so far with some time on the pitch alongside some of the world's best players. Next up, Leon for England...