Go back to previous topic
Forum nameOkay Sports
Topic subjectDoes it matter?
Topic URLhttp://board.okayplayer.com/okp.php?az=show_topic&forum=8&topic_id=2099249&mesg_id=2099505
2099505, Does it matter?
Posted by B9, Fri Dec-28-12 08:24 PM
He's far more versed and informed in the true nuance of Spain than whomever All Stah is, who, from what I can tell, is just as cultured as his internet connection takes him.

The RFEF does value players who play in Spain over those who go abroad, unless they are of exceptional talent (Silva, Mata, Javi Martinez), and really only then after they've established themselves in La Liga. If you leave La Liga at a young age, you are handicapping your ability to be noticed by the national setup. See here: Mikel Arteta or, recently, Daniel Carvajal.

Not to mention that Montoya has actually been picked for the national team, not Azpilicueta, and, currently, del Bosque still picks Ramos wide when he has his full complement of players healthy at the back (read: when Pique is healthy). Azpilicueta could soon be jumped by Oscar Arroyo, a kid Madrid bought this last year from Espanyol as a long-term replacement at right back and will likely take that position in a few years (especially when Mourinho gets out of the way and we see, what I suspect, is a massive swing to a Spanish-centric philosophy at Madrid). Del Bosque has brought him in on a few occasions to play on the practice squad against his first 11, and he's only 19. Think of that.

So yeah, it doesn't matter that one person, who's talking purely in facts, isn't Spanish and that another person, talking purely in not-too-rote tribalism, isn't. Azpilicueta is a good player; problem is there are a ton of good players that can't even sniff the field for Spain.