in the Times
“Another emerging midfielder is Koke. It will be difficult for him to break into Spain’s team but he can play in any position in the middle. He’s more squat and stocky and maybe more combative than Xavi or Iniesta, and while he might not quite have their qualities, he is still a very good player. He is being linked with Barcelona but when I enquired about him last season the message from Atletico Madrid was that he is so important to them that he is the last player they would want to sell.”