PLAYER PROFILE:“MICHU”

Early Career and Britain

Miguel Perez Cuesta， or Michu， as he is known， was born in Oviedo， Spain， on 21 March 1986. He began his football career at local side Real Oviedo before moving to Spanish clubs Celta de Vigo and then Rayo Vallecano， playing his first game in Spain’s top division with Rayo in the 2011～2012 season. Michu signed for Swansea in July 2012 for E2 million， which now seems a bargain for the Welsh club. He was Swansea’s top scorer in the Premier League in 2012～2013 with 18 goals， and he also scored in the League Cup Final victory over Bradford City （5-0）. He was voted Swansea’s Player of the Year， 2012～2013.

Michu at Swansea

Michu played his first league game for Swansea on 18 August 2012 and made an immediate impact. He scored two goals and assisted for another in a 5-0 win at Queen’s Park Rangers. He played at Rayo Vallecano as an attacking midfielder， but he was given the number 9 shirt at Swansea. With the number of goals he scored in his first season――22 in all competitions he proved that he could play as a striker. Swansea signed Wilfried Bony from Dutch side Vitesse in the summer of 2013 for a club record E12 million. The arrival of Bony meant that Michu could now play as a second striker.

The Spanish National Team

In terms of selection for the Spanish national team， Michu is very unlucky to be playing football at the same time as Spain’s Golden Generation of players. They have won the last three major competitions in world football： the European Championship in 2008 and 2012 and the South Africa World Cup in 2010. The Swansea striker was almost selected for a friendly match against Uruguay in February 2013， but he was cut from the squad. Coach Vicente Del Bosque explained why.“Michu deserves to play. We recognise his quality and his goals in the Premier League， but we can’t find a space for him at the moment.”

Swansea City

There are two Welsh clubs in the Premier League： Swansea City and Cardiff City. Swansea， founded in 1912， are 13 years younger than Cardiff. They are great rivals. Swansea have been in the top division five times， including 2013～2014， while Cardiff have been there 16 times. Swansea’s best position was sixth in 1981～1982. As Welsh Cup winners， they have played in European competitions――specifically the Cup-Winners’Cup-seven times. But the only major trophy that Swansea have won was the League Cup in 2013. They beat Bradford City of League Two （fourth level） 5-o in the final to qualify for the 2013-14 Europa League.

Michu’s First Love A part of Michu’s heart belongs to a club other than Swansea： Real Oviedo.The Swansea star was at Real from the age of 5 until 21.In 2012， along with Chelsea’s Juan Mata and Arsenal’sSanti Cazorla， Michu bought shares in the club.“We just wanted to try and help save the club we all played for，”said Michu.“The economy in Spain is very bad and the club needs a lot of money to survive. lt’s my local club， a club I love.”In November 2012，one of the richest men in the world， the Mexican Carlos Slim， invested in the club and it was saved from extinction.

Activity l

Put the following events in order of when they happened.

e.g.a） He moved to Celta de Vigo.b） He began his career at Real Oviedo.c） He was born.Answer：c， b， a

a） Michu signed for Swansea.

b） Swansea signed Wilfried Bony.

c） Spain won the World Cup.

d） Swansea won the League Cup.

e） Carlos Slim invested in Swansea City.

Activity 2

Find words/expressions in the text that mean the same as the following.

e.g.near home

Answer：/oca/

a） a small price to pay

b） passed the ball for someone else to score

c） not a competitive match

d） created

e） economic parts of a company

Activity 3

“Michu is very unlucky.”‘Unlucky’is the opposite of the adjective‘lucky’.What are the opposites of the following words？

a） first b） scored c） major d） top e） bought

Activity 4

Do any players in your country have a strange way of celebrating a goal？