West Ham United star Pablo Fornals has finally got the Spain recall he so richly deserves.
Fornals has been brilliant for West Ham under David Moyes.
The former Villarreal and Malaga star was a key player in helping West Ham to a sixth place finish and into the Europa League last season.
And he has started the new season in fine form, shining in 4-2 and 4-1 victories over Newcastle and Leicester City.
Those wins have put West Ham top of the fledgling Premier League table. It is the first time the Hammers have been at the Prem’s summit since 2006.
Fornals helped Spain’s Under 21s win the European Championships the summer he signed for West Ham for £24 million.
He has made two appearances for Spain’s senior national side in the past.
But despite his fine form for West Ham over the last 18 months or so, he was continually snubbed for a place in the Spain squad.
He missed out on a place in Luis Enrique’s young new squad for the summer’s Euros as the Spaniards made the semi-finals.
But Fornals was called into a Covid bubble support squad after several positive tests in the senior squad.
The brilliant midfielder’s services were not required in the end. But Fornals had an excellent attitude towards the situation saying he was proud to be considered in the top 24/25 players in a great footballing country like Spain.
Fornals’s attitude and performances have clearly impressed Enrique, though, after the West Ham star received a recall for Spain’s 2022 World Cup qualifiers against Sweden, Georgia and Kosovo.
And the way Enrique announced the call-up was simply magic.
Spain posted a video on social media showing Enrique wearing a Spain backpack.
He is then filmed in the changing room revealing the players who have been selected. And he does so by hanging up backpacks on their locker pegs sporting their names.
Enrique started with the goalkeepers and made his way through to the attacking players and strikers.
And he hung West Ham star Fornals’s backpack up in among the attacking selection.
“OFFICIAL Luis Enrique takes roll in the ‘back to school’ of our internationals,” the Spanish Football Association posted on Twitter.
“These are the players called up for the next three games of the Spain squad in the Qualification Phase at Qatar 2022.
“Start a new course!”
Check out the full video below.