Sobrino celebrates birthday with football always present

Rubén Sobrino celebrates his birthday this Monday, and does so doing what he loves most: Kicking a football around at the Ciudad Deportiva. His passion for the sport began when he was 6 years old, and footballs have been synonymous with his special day ever since. The striker would receive them on the morning of his birthday, then put them into a prime position on display above his wardrobe in his childhood bedroom.

Of course, he had his favourites to use when friends called him to play, and those which he liked to keep in pristine condition. One of his prized possessions was the ball used at the 2002 World Cup in Korea and Japan.

Sobrino would play with his cousins, his schoolfriends and his teammates at Daimiel Escuelas Deportivas, whom he represented until the age of 16 -when he joined the Real Madrid youth setup. His afternoons were filled with impromptu kickabouts, with summer mornings also seeing him getting a group together to play.

Sobrino has family in Valencia, and one year he was given a Romario replica shirt, from the time in which the Brazilian played for the club. He followed in the superstar's footsteps many years later, when in the winter of 2019 he joined Valencia CF.