by Oliver Kay
A HUGE banner greeted Spain's bleary-eyed players as they stepped back on to native soil as world champions yesterday.
It read: "Welcome to the happiest country."
Had it sounded a more triumphalist note, such as "Welcome to the centre of the football universe", it would not have been out of place.
It certainly seemed that way, standing in the bowels of the Johannesburg's Soccer City stadium after the World Cup final, watching young men such as Xavi Hernandez, Andres Iniesta and David Villa stroll past, proudly wearing their gold winner's medals around their necks as they described their emotions.
It was the same joyous scene in Vienna two years earlier, on the night they were crowned champion of Europe.
This is a golden age for Spanish football. For the national team, previously synonymous with failure and disunity, to win the European Championship and then the World Cup is triumph enough. To do so while being widely acclaimed as the finest team in international football, is another.
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For this transformation to have come at a time when La Liga has re-established itself as the most glamorous league on the planet -- with Real Madrid recruiting Xabi Alonso, Kaka, Cristiano Ronaldo and Jose Mourinho in an attempt to keep pace with Barcelona -- merely strengthens Spain's position at the heart of the sport in 2010.
Is the English Premier League the greatest in the world, as its financial strength and some stellar performances in the Champions League had indicated between 2005 and 2009? Try telling Xavi, Iniesta and Villa that as they prepare to team up with Lionel Messi at Barcelona.
Try telling Iker Casillas, Sergio Ramos and Alonso as they, Kaka, Ronaldo and perhaps a big-money signing or two from the Premier League -- with Nemanja Vidic, Ashley Cole and Steven Gerrard among Real's targets -- launch a new era under Mourinho's charismatic coaching.
For that matter, try telling Cesc Fabregas that the Premier League is the best stage for his talents.
The Arsenal captain told Arsene Wenger in May that he wanted to return to Barcelona, the club he left as a 16-year-old. If he is to spend another season in North London it will not be out of choice.
On his way out of Soccer City, Fabregas referred to his career in England in the past tense, saying he was "really proud to have been an Arsenal player".
His affection for the club is genuine, as he made clear by saying that he dedicated his medal to Arsenal and its supporters, but if he had his way, he would be at the Nou Camp next season. Fabregas has seen what returning to Barcelona has done for Gerard Pique, with whom he spent six years in the Catalan club's academy before heading for Manchester United.
Since leaving Old Trafford two years ago, Pique has blossomed into a top-class defender and one of the mainstays of this Spain team.
Unlike Fabregas, he never settled in England, something that should temper criticism of United's failure to make only a small profit from his signing.
As they sat together on the flight back to Madrid, it is not hard to imagine Pique's attempts to convince the midfield player to join him, Carles Puyol, Sergio Busquets, Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro Rodriguez and Villa at Barcelona.
"We are living a dream," Fabregas said of Spain's victory over Holland in the World Cup final, in which he set up the only goal for Iniesta late in extra time.
"We are very proud of what we have achieved.
"We believed it was our moment to do it, a bit like the France side that did the double (in 1998 and 2000). We have a special team and special squad and we had to take our chance.
"Last time it was (Marcos) Senna and so many other good people. Now we have Busquets, Pique, Pedro -- great players who are coming through. Spanish football is growing and we have to be proud of it."
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