Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata admits he has not given up hope of playing for Spain again and the thought of it still excites him.
Mata, who has made 34 appearances for his country and scored 10 goals since making his debut in March 2009 against Turkey, last played for La Roja in their 3-0 win over Australia in last year’s World Cup.
However, the 26-year-old says he is still aiming to impress boss Vicente del Bosque and earn a recall.
“Many of you are asking me these days about the Spanish national team,” began Mata on his personal blog.
“As I always say, I have been very lucky to play and to win a World Cup and a European Championship, to participate in the most important competitions, but I'm still as excited as the first day.
"I’m convinced that I'm at a perfect age in my football career and I look forward to keep contributing and achieving more success with my national team.
“That's what I work for every day, training and playing to the maximum, trying to do the best I can. After that, obviously, the Coach is the one who picks the players for every game. “So now I take these quiet days to keep working, as I said, but I also switch off and rest a bit.”
