There were lots of Spanish teams who didn't want to sign me because of my height when I was 15, 16 years old.

Santi Cazorla

Categorized in : Me Old Want Height

I like to smile. I try to bring happiness on and off the pitch. I don't understand how you can play football without joy.

you smile happiness football

They've put skin from my arm on my ankle and from my thigh on my arm. So whenever I get asked what's happened to me, I end up saying it's like a little jigsaw, parts of my body all over the place.

skin end place me

What I would do after training is stay half an hour and kick the ball against a wall with my weaker foot over and over again to make sure it gets stronger. And young players should remember that everything comes from the base of hard work, so never give up.

never-give-up hard-work work remember

If I take a penalty, I prefer to take it with my right foot.

foot prefer right take

I don't pay attention to which foot I'm developing. I just train normally and use both feet. I'd say I'm right-footed.

say train feet attention

Being able to use both feet was something that came quite naturally to me ever since I started playing. However, it's something I work on all the time to make sure that level never gets any lower.

me feet work time

It's strange that we don't see more English players going to the Spanish league.

english more see strange

I love watching English football. There are teams in the Premier League that play a style similar to Spanish teams - Arsenal, for example - but in general, it's much quicker; there's so much pace.

style play love football

Malaga were the club that bid the hardest for me, and they were the first, too. When Villarreal told me that they wanted to sell me, I chose them.

club first me hardest

I'm lucky to have football. My father was 16 when he worked in the mines. That's practically a child, going down the mines.

down child football father

Sometimes you are valued more when you're away than when you are in your own country.

your you sometimes country

Being tall isn't what makes you a good footballer, and I don't think that's the defining factor in English football at all.

good think you football

During your life, you always have different players that you like. When I was a child, because my dad liked the 'Dream Team', I liked Michael Laudrup.

you dad team life