The 22-year-old has been in scintillating form for Barcelona in the last two seasons and has emerged as one of Spain's best young talents. He has always looked likely to succeed at the top level having helped his country win the European Under-16 Championship five years ago. He was also in the side that reached the World Youth Championship final in the United Arab Emirates in 2003 and went on to captain the Under-21 team. He made his Barcelona debut in October 2002 in a Champions League game against Club Brugge and became an integral part of the title-winning side of 2004-05, playing in every game. He was once again outstanding during the 2005-06 season.