All you NBA fans might remember Rick Kamla’s ‘Free Monta’ campaign for Warriors guard Monta Ellis from last season, which produced some pretty decent results last time I checked. After watching Merseyside Mayhem II this morning, I’m wondering if 101 Soccer Live and friends across the Web should rally similar support for dynamic Everton midfielder Mikel Arteta, who once again was left out of the Spanish national team lineup for its midweek encounter last Wednesday.

The depth of the Spanish midfield has already been commended here and in so many other places for its sheer talent and upside. Even still, looking at Wednesday’s roster, it’s hard to understand how Arteta has failed yet once more to crack the sub list. It included Albert Riera, a fierce presence for Espanyol, and Liverpool veteran Xabi Alonso, whose illustrious international credentials speak for themselves. Impressive enough, but Arteta easily is one of the top three players for Everton, the strong fifth-rated team in a league hailed as being the most solid in the world. The excuses for Arteta snubs are becoming fewer and fewer as Arteta and the Toffies continue their rapid rise.

And it’s not like he has played himself out of Spain’s plans — he’s only had seven appearances in mostly nondescript senior competitions to prove himself. A theory exists that Spain has never preferred to pick players that don’t play in its beloved La Liga, unless they are of another stratosphere like Cesc Fabregas. But, like Fabregas, Arteta got his start at Barcelona and was practically forced to move on to get significant first-team playing time. Plus, he was an understudy of Ronaldinho, Mr. La Liga himself, at Paris-St.Germain before moving up the ranks toward Everton.

So absolutely, I happen to think there’s too much for Spain to like to keep Arteta out of Euro 2008 and you probably will, too, if you appreciate that famed wag of his who will accompany him and no doubt command a few TV shots in the crowd.

Free Mikel!