David Silva: Why the Silent Genius Is Still Somewhat Underappreciated in Spain

David Silva called time on his career as an international footballer after this summer's FIFA World Cup finals in Russia. It has been a heck of a ride—a World Cup win, as well as two triumphs in the European Championship and over a century of caps going back more than a decade.

Silva first got on Spain's team in 2006. We didn't know it at the time but he was part of a wave of small, slight midfield geniuses—including Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta—that was set to revolutionise football.

What has marked out Silva—apart from his playmaking and silken skills—has been, perhaps surprisingly, his physical courage.

"I remember at the beginning when he arrived on the Spanish national team, he…