Unai Emery helping to give Villarreal a second wave of excellency in La Liga

Many sing about the fairy tale of New York around Christmas but Villarreal are the fairy tale of Spanish football. Let’s face it how many football fans had heard of the club before their fantastic run to the Champions League semi-finals in 2006? Whatever the figure halve it down to how many fans knew of the club back in 1998. That year Villarreal made their debut in La Liga.

It really is an amazing story, and true we’ve seen it before where clubs from a second division get promoted and do well enough to finish in the top 5 for example and qualify for Europe. But Villarreal went that step further and though they have been relegated on a few occasions since 1998 they keep coming back, have attracted quality players and coaches and are doing rather well this season.

This summer Unai Emery former coach of PSG and Arsenal signed a three year contract with the club known as ‘The Yellow Submarines’, and he already has a 53% win rate. The most stunning fact is that Villarreal have lost just once this season and are in 3rd place with 20 points, three in front of Real Madrid and six in front of Barcelona and four from the top.

No one is expecting Villarreal to be a realistic challenger for the title this season, though at the present time La Liga is well open to invitations, but if the club can finish in a European position Emery would have done his job and brought the club full circle.

It is incredible to think that the club have risen from a population of just 50,000 and their achievements have been quite incredible. Not only reaching the 2006 Champions League semi-final, but they also reached the semi-finals of the Europa League on three occasions and finished as runners up in La Liga back in 2008. They finished just 8 points shy of Real Madrid the champions but 10 points in front of Barcelona, that Barcelona team who were just getting ready to become one of the best clubs sides we have ever witnessed.

The recruitment at Villarreal has been impressive and apart from a few seasons when they club didn’t perform at all well these past 22 years have been incredible for the club. Much of that is down to club president Fernando Roig.

Roig took the gamble to buy Villarreal back in 1997 and it has been his clear investment and strategy that has brought the clubs most successful era to fruition in the past two decades. Back in 2017 Roig had this to say about the club. “The fans can complain that we haven’t won a trophy, but I’d like to assure them that really, the best thing for Villarreal is ensuring that the club remains in the top flight that’s our own Cup tournament in a way. For this club, the most important triumph is playing in the top division every year and playing in Europe every now and again. Villarreal is economically stable and in a few years’ time, our youth academy will be a source of new talent for the team.

Villarreal have had stand out players of the past including Juan Roman Riquelme, Robert Pires, Giuseppi Rossi and Diego Forlan to name a few. The current squad are doing well too.

Gerard Moreno currently has 57 goals and is just 26 shy of becoming the clubs all time leading goalscorer. At 28 he has the time to do it as long as he stays fit and doesn’t leave beforehand. This season alone Moreno has scored six goals and has the most fantasy points of any Villarreal player with 25 so far.

Just behind him is his striker partner Paco Alcacer who would cost you just 3m and has earned 24 points this season. He has been involved in seven goals so far and has scored 5.

Manuel Trigueros and Daniel Parejo have bolstered the midfield and in defence Mario Gaspar has stood out, he has 14 points so far and has helped to keep 3 clean sheets.

Once again the future looks bright for Villarreal, and this season in particular could be very memorable indeed if they can keep up their good form under Emery. Right now nobody can be thinking that their yellow submarine is going to sink this season.

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The Best 11 Players in La Liga 2020/21 so far

With internationals taking over the domestic season last week and this week we look at the players who are making all the noise in the Spanish league so far. Just who has been the best performing players this season?. Both Real Madrid and Barcelona have struggled so far, and only 1 player overall has made the final cut- who is it? Just who has been making the biggest impact so far in the league? In a 4-4-2 formation we will find out below:

Goalkeeper: Remiro- Real Sociedad 35pts

Remiro and Jan Oblak have the same points and have clearly been the outstanding goalkeepers in La Liga, however Remiro has played more games and whist Oblak was expected to have a great season Remiro wasn’t. The shot stopper has kept 5 clean sheets so far this season and Real Sociedad are top of the league.

Defender: Kieran Trippier- Atletico Madrid 27pts

Kieran Trippier is currently the best defender in Spanish football with 27 fantasy points earned. Atletico Madrid are in great form and the Englishman has helped to keep 5 clean sheets at the back and has also assisted in a goal. His value is 7m.

Defender: Mario Hermoso- Atletico Madrid 21pts

Mario Hermoso alongside Trippier has been solid as a rock in Atletico Madrid’s defence and has helped keep 4 clean sheets, he has played 2 less games than Trippier with five matches completed so far, his value is 5m.

Defender: Stefan Savic- Atletico Madrid 20pts

Atletico Madrid dominate the defence in Spanish football that is because they have staggeringly only conceded 2 goals this season from their seven games played. Savic has 20 fantasy points so far and has helped keep 4 clean sheets.

Defender: Felipe- Atletico Madrid 19pts

Felipe not only defends well but also has pace on the counter attack and is yet another Atletico Madrid player to make it in defence this season. The club have only conceded 1 goal at home and 1 away. Felipe has helped to keep 4 clean sheets.

Midfielder: Portu- Real Sociedad 30pts

So far Portu has been the best defender in the league and has 30 points after a blistering start which has saw his team Real Sociedad in the top position. He has been involved in 6 goals, scoring 4 and assisting in 2 and has been a revelation this season, his value is 8.5m.

Midfielder: Marcos Llorente- Atletico Madrid 25pts

Back to Atletico Madrid and their best midfielder has been Marcos Llorente. He has scored 3 goals and assisted in two others. He has been a great fixture in the middle of the field and one of the best players in the league so far overall.

Midfielder: Angel Correa- Atletico Madrid 22pts

Angel Correa has been able to link up well with Llorente in midfield. His contribution to the team has also been very important. He isn’t much of a goalscorer, although has scored this season but he is all about assist, and has already set up 4 goals this season.

Midfielder: Federico Valverde- Real Madrid 20pts

From Real Madrid and Barcelona it is incredible to think that only 1 player has made this team of the season so far. It’s been an interesting season though. Valverde has scored 3 goals and assisted in one, in an otherwise bumpy start for Zinedine Zidane’s team.

Striker: Mikel Oyarzabal- Real Sociedad 27pts

With Real Sociedad being the best team so far in the league it is no surprise that they have a striker who has started so well. Mikel Oyarzabal has chalked up 27 points through scoring six goals and also assisting in a further two. His current value is only 8m and he could end up being the best striker over the season at this rate.

Striker: Paco Alcacer- Villarreal 24pts

Paco Alcacer seems to be having a second wind as a striker and has done well with Villarreal so far this season. He has scored 5 goals and assisted in 2 and wit 24 points he is currently the 2nd best striker in Spain. His value is a real bargain at just 3m.

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Fantasy La Liga Gameweek 1 Picks

The 2020-21 Spanish La Liga season kicks off on Friday night with Granada hosting Athletic Club.

Defending champions Real Madrid have been given the opening weekend off due to their participation in the Champions League over in Portugal last month. Likewise, Barcelona, Sevilla and Atletico Madrid all have the weekend off. Elche and Getafe will therefore not be in action for week 1 either as they were scheduled to meet last season’s top two.

All eight games kick off at different times meaning fans can watch all of their fantasy players on TV. With that in mind, here are eleven players to consider for your first squad of the new season:

Goalkeeper: Sergio Asenjo
Difficult to call a clean sheet in the opening weekend particularly with none of the big teams in action. Villarreal didn’t have the best defensive record last season but they finished fifth and host Huesca on the opening weekend so Sergio Asenjo could be a smart choice.

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Jadon Sancho must start for Borussia Dortmund

Borussia Dortmund and England youth international Jadon Sancho once again propelled himself into the headlines with a sublime performance against Eintracht Frankfurt on Friday night.

Introduced on the hour mark, it took Sancho just 12 minutes to assist Marius Wolf to put Dortmund back in the lead. The 18-year-old played a key role in the goal with just three touches. Marco Reus dropped deep, bringing the defender with him which allowed Sancho space in behind. One first touch, a Ronaldo chop and a cross within seconds, Sancho found Wolf at the far post to fire past Eintracht’s Kevin Trapp. Continue reading

Paco Alcacer set for Borussia Dortmund debut

alcacer

Summer arrival Paco Alcacer is set to make his Borussia Dortmund debut on Friday night following his one-year loan signing from La Liga’s Barcelona. The Spaniard will add much needed fire power to BVB’s frontline following the departure of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to Arsenal in January while they were unable to sign Michy Batshuayi on a permanent deal. Continue reading