Football Player's Biography 7: Santi Cazorla

Full name	Santiago Cazorla González
Date of birth	13 December 1984 (1984-12-13) (age 26)
Place of birth	Llanera, Spain
Height	1.68 m (5 ft 6 in)
Playing position	Winger

Santiago "Santi" Cazorla González born 13 December 1984 in Llanera, Asturias) is a Spanish footballer who plays for Villarreal CF in La Liga.
A versatile winger, he can play on either flank, being ambidextrous. He is noted for his speed and capacity to change the rhythm of gameplay.
Cazorla represented Spain at Euro 2008, helping the national team win the tournament.

Club career

Having started playing football for local Asturian club Real Oviedo, Cazorla was snapped up by Villarreal CF several months before turning 18. He progressed through the reserve team, making his first team debut on 30 November 2003, playing one minute in a 1–0 win at Deportivo de La Coruña.
Established in the main squad in 2004–05, Cazorla scored four goals in the season's UEFA Cup, also making two goalless appearances in the following season's UEFA Champions League .
On 7 July 2006, Recreativo de Huelva signed Cazorla for €600.000 on a four-year contract, with a clause in his contract whereby he could return to Villarreal (for €1.2 million), going on to score in his team debut, a 1–1 home draw with RCD Mallorca, on 27 August. He became Spanish player of the year according to Don Balón, a member of European Sports Magazines after topping its rating list.^[2] On April 22, 2007, Cazorla dedicated a goal to his father, who had died recently, in a 4–2 home win against Racing de Santander. He helped the Andalusians, which had just returned from the second division, eventually finish eighth.
The following year, Villarreal took advantage of the clause in Cazorla's contract and bought him back, as the team believed he had proven himself. In his first season in his second spell, Cazorla was instrumental in Villarreal's final runner-up final placing, providing assists for Nihat Kahveci and Giuseppe Rossi and netting five goals himself.
On 26 August 2008, Cazorla announced that Real Madrid wanted to buy him.^[3] He then went on to cause a stir in the media by rejecting the team announcing that, "There are many other things in football besides Real Madrid. It's clear that it is possible to say "no" to them, There is no doubt that they are a great team, but I also feel very satisfied and valued at my club". "I hope I can continue growing at Villarreal because I am young and I’m only starting off with the national team."^[4]
During a league game against UD Almería in early April 2009, Cazorla injured his right fibula after suffering a challenge from two opponents.^[5] He missed several matches but the Yellow Submarine still managed to qualify for the Europa League, as the player made his comeback earlier than expected in the side's final match, a 3–2 win at RCD Mallorca, and finished the league campaign with a career-best eight goals.
Cazorla struggled heavily with injury in the 2009–10 season,^[6]^[7] going on to miss the 2010 World Cup.^[8] He returned to full fitness in the following campaign, only missing one match and scoring five times as Villarreal finished fourth and qualified to the Champions League.

International career

Cazorla began his international career in the U21 team, under Iñaki Sáez. He was called upon for play-off matches against Italy for the 2004 Summer Olympics.^[9]
Cazorla played the first match, which ended 0–0, where he coming on the 77' minute for Javier Arizmendi, but was absent in the second leg, as the nation did not eventually qualify for the competition.^[10]
On 17 May 2008, senior side boss Luis Aragonés surprised the Spanish press by including the uncapped Cazorla and Sergio García in his UEFA Euro 2008 squad, over more established wingers such as Joaquín and Albert Riera.^[11] To justify his decision when asked, Aragonés stated, "They are players [Cazorla and García] who are performing very well and had the possibility of coming. I made myself decide between Riera and Cazorla where I considered each player's form, and in Sergio García's case, he has become very effective on the right wing, we needed another player there and he deserved to come".^[12]
After making his debut on 31 May 2008 in a 2–1 friendly win over Peru, Cazorla made substitute appearances in the tournament's group stage matches against Russia,^[13] Sweden^[14] and Greece,^[15] also coming from the bench in the quarterfinals against Italy, converting his penalty in the ensuing shootout which Spain won.^[16] In the final, he played the last 25 minutes for David Silva, as Spain defeated Germany 1–0 and aided his country in winning their first major tournament in 44 years.^[17]
On 19 November 2008, Cazorla scored his first international goal against Chile, a 3–0 friendly win on his club's homeground. He was summoned for the following year's FIFA Confederations Cup, where he made a couple of substitute appearances.
After missing the 2010 FIFA World Cup due to a hernia,^[6] Cazorla returned to the national team's setup. On 4 June 2011, during the first half of a friendly against the United States in Boston, he scored twice on assists from Silva, in a 4–0 win