Luis Alberto has revealed his call-up to the Spanish national squad for November’s friendlies is his best moment as a professional footballer.
The 25-year-old former Sevilla winger has scored three times and provided seven assists in 16 appearances for high-flying Lazio this season.
“This is the best thing that has ever happened to me in football,” Alberto told Marca.
“I was at home with my wife and kept an eye on the list. The first name out was Alberto Moreno, who is like a brother to me, and after three or four names, mine appeared.
“It was a moment of maximum euphoria, I dropped the phone and we embraced… After that, I sent messages to my friends, family, to a group where there are several players.
“People say I’m one of the best performers in Serie A this season? I was certainly one of the worst last year. I decided to make a change, because it was all slipping away.
“I have to thank the people who helped me, as they helped me to find faith in myself, ignore what was around me and focus on helping the team.
“My wife helped a lot, as did Juan Campillo, who I worked with on my mentality. I realised that two flashes in a match weren’t enough, as you can’t just play well for 20 minutes out of 90.
“Now I try to help the Lazio youngsters who don’t play as much. I tell them to watch me or Sergej Milinkovic-Savic, as now we are playing regularly and before we weren’t.
“You mustn’t throw in the towel, you have to keep faith in yourself and know everything can change.”