Gayà celebrates 25th birthday

José Luis Gayà celebrates his 25th birthday today, as a player who went from being a young fan to one of the captains of his boyhood club and a national team regular.

Support for Valencia CF ran in his family: Grandfather Juan, a former mayor of Gayà's hometown of Pedreguer, was a keen admirer of the 'Delantera Eléctrica' strikeforce of the 1940s, and told his grandson all about the club.

Presents related to Valencia CF also featured on his birthdays. Along with the typical footballs and replica shirts given to him on his special day, in 1999 -when the future fullback turned four years old- his grandmother, brother Álex and cousins all celebrated with a 'piñata' doll of a Valencia CF player in the patio of their house.

When he was five years old, Gayà went to Mestalla for the first time. Soon after, he was called up to have a trial with the VCF Academy, who had seen him in action for Pedreguer against Denia. He is one of the most successful recent graduates of the club's youth system, and is a stalwart of the first team at the age of 25.