• Adama Traoré. "My dream was to defend the shield and the flag of Spain"

  • League of Nations - Spain's group

The day that

Jesús Navas

made his debut in the First Division (November 23, 2003),

Ansu Fati

had just turned one year old and, according to his father, he had not yet broken walking.

This Saturday the two will start, the youngest as a left winger and the oldest as a right back, a place that Guardiola found for him at City and that has allowed him to extend his career until today, without anyone guessing where the end is. of a 34-year-old boy who avoids injuries and has a

unheard of resilience.

"Jesus rests 15 minutes and he can throw another three seasons," Luis Enrique praised him when he offered the squad list in September. Los Palacios footballers is not an alternative to

Dani carvajal

, is that you discuss ownership in the selection from you to you.

Recovered by

Fought

in March 2019 - it had not been summoned for five years, in the same month, but 2014-,

The little bird

, close friend of the captain

Bouquets

, shines again as in his early years, back in 2009. World champion (2010) starting the play of the goal of

Iniesta

, and European champion (2012) with a leading role in the victory against Croatia, the selection is, for him, a kind of youthful illusion.

In fact, he remembers as one of the worst parts of his career the fact of having missed the World Cup in Brazil due to an injury from which he thought he had recovered.

Forest

He didn't think the same. Talking with him has gone from impossible to not easy.

Progress is not small for someone extremely shy, lifeless beyond football and his home, where he barely leaves.

He likes to be with his wife

Alexandra

, and his sons,

Jesus

Y

Romeo

.

In the first interviews he gave, the monosyllables became uncomfortable.

Today it is not that he expands on very long answers, but at least he reflects with the maturity that age grants.

He is a goldfinch, (he measures 1.70 and weighs 64 kilos) and in that physical constitution, mixed with a professionalism that is proof of any temptation, lies the secret of a guy who exceeds 10 kilometers per game in more than 80% of their appearances.

"It's a show to see him center"

However, in the technical team of the selection, and in that of

Lopetegui

At Sevilla, one of the things they appreciate the most is the quality of their centers.

There are some full-backs who reach the baseline like him, but there are not many who know how to put tense balls, with the right thread and the right power.

«It is a spectacle to see him focus in training, with rival and without rival.

The ball goes for the striker, not the striker for the ball ”, they tell from the concentration.

It is true that in Spain there is no clear finisher, but just look at Sevilla's statistics to see how

De Jong

enjoy that advantage.

Kanoute

, despite the years after the Malian's departure from Sevilla, those who know him say that he still sighs when the anniversaries of the deaths of two

siblings

as they were

Door

Y

Kings

.

In those moments, as in almost all, soccer and his family are his vital handles.

And especially, it should be emphasized, the selection, where he has the very real hope of becoming the protagonist of a great tournament nine years later.

He has not returned to a finals since Euro 2012. Next year's is just around the corner.

It will catch him with 35 years, so what?

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