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| Cesc Fabregas |
Cesc Fabregas has revealed how his experiences with the Spanish national team shaped the way he has grown into the professional footballer he is today.
Speaking to Goal.com, the former Arsenal and Barcelona midfielder revealed how he admired Zinedine Zidane who scored two goals in the final of the World Cup at France in 1998 when he was asked to name his football idol.
He said: “My first football memory was Zinedine Zidane scoring two goals in the final of the World Cup at France in 1998.”
The 28-year-old however says Spain’s coach at Euro 2008 Luis Aragones who had handed him his debut at the age of 18, left a big mark on him.
“He is a person who left a big mark on me, both mentally and psychologically. I never liked being on the bench, that’s how I am.”
“In the first game against Russia, I started on the bench and then came on in the second half. I gave the pass to David Villa for the third goal and scored the fourth, which was also the first I had scored with the national team,” he recalls.
“I was shattered at the end. I wanted to give everything and I went away happy because I thought I had done well in the 25 minutes I had played.”
Cesc recalls that “the day after the games, we would usually go out for a walk out on the pitch while Aragones gave us a talk about the match from the previous day.
“The first thing he said was that my attitude had been shameless and he tore into me for that” – in front of the entire team. “That got to me a lot,” he added.
“And even though I never knew if he did it intentionally, I ended up having a fantastic Euros.”
Speaking of assisting Andrea Iniesta to score the winning goal in the 2010 FIFA World Cup final, the midfielder said such memories will never be erased.
He said: “That’s a moment that can never be erased both individually and collectively – and to experience it as one of the main protagonists is something amazing.
“I’d prefer to think about those things when I am old and bored at home, not now while I’m still playing and the demands are so high. I prefer not to look back on all the good things because I want even more and even better things in the future.”
Fabregas was a key figure in Spain’s European Championship victories in 2008 and 2012 and their 2010 World Cup triumph in which he supplied the pass for Andrés Iniesta’s winning goal in the final.
He has represented his country in the 2006 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2008, 2009 FIFA Confederations Cup, 2010 FIFA World Cup, UEFA Euro 2012, 2013 FIFA Confederations Cup and the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
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