When Robert Sanchez was told he was making his Premier League debut at Tottenham Hotspur, the first thing he did was to call his mum.
"Straightaway when I found out, I called her and I was like, 'You need to make sure you find the time to watch the full game because I'm playing tomorrow', " Sanchez said. "Yeah, she got really excited and, obviously, she's really, really happy."
The Brighton & Hove Albion goalkeeper was handed his first start on 1 November. It was a moment to cherish for his parents, who supported him when he moved from his native Spain at the age of 15 to join Brighton's Academy and pursue his dream of playing professional football.
Hard work pays off
Sanchez was speaking after receiving his Premier League Debut Ball. These balls are given to homegrown debutants in the Premier League who have been in an English Academy for at least three years prior to their 21st birthday, and they mark their rise to the top flight.
The match with Spurs was the culmination of eight years of hard work for Sanchez with Brighton, including loan spells at Forest Green Rovers and Rochdale.
And the 23-year-old has gone on to establish himself as the club's first-choice goalkeeper, being ever-present since a trip to Fulham on 16 December.
"We knew that it was a good idea to come to this country, and especially after I came here and saw the way people were and the way they treat youngsters, so I came here and everyone made me feel like a family," Sanchez said.
Sanchez has been in superb form for Brighton, keeping five clean sheets in his last six appearances, and he will hope to extend that run when the Seagulls host Crystal Palace on Monday.
