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Men Of La Mancha: Praising Jesus
The international break gave David Mosse to pause and reflect on the La Liga season thus far, starting with a look at the blossoming career of Sevilla winger Jesus Navas.
Nov 12, 2009 11:01:31 PM
The title of third biggest power in Spain has bounced around like a hot potato through the years. But few could argue with Sevilla's claim at the moment.
Since 2006, the club has won two UEFA Cup titles, a Copa del Rey, and finished in the top five in the league each and every season. Not too shabby when you consider how little money has been spent in the transfer market. In fact, most of the business done the past few years has been selling important players to its fiercest rivals – Sergio Ramos, Daniel Alves, Seydou Keita.
The question this season was whether Sevilla -- or anyone else for that matter -- could possibly hang with the Big Two. The answer so far is a resounding yes. Manolo Jimenez's team sits just four points behind leaders Barcelona, and three points adrift of Real Madrid. Sevilla is also the only Spanish side through to the knockout stages of the Champions League (though Real Madrid and Barcelona will likely still progress).
Madrid has already been conquered, as Sevilla notched a not-as-close-as-the-score 2-1 win over the Merengues on Oct. 4 at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium. The star of the show that night was Jesus Navas, who contributed the first goal with a soaring header and terrorized Madrid's defense all game long with his rampaging runs down the right side.
Navas was on target in the 1-1 draw against Stuttgart that sealed Sevilla's passage to the knockout stages of the Champions League and opened the scoring this past Tuesday in the second leg of a Copa del Rey tie against Atletico Ciudad. In many ways, this has been his season so far, as the 23-year-old is finally harnessing all his potential and becoming a full-blown star.
It is a measure of how well he has performed that earlier this week, Navas was included in Spain's squad for the friendlies against Argentina and Austria. Make no mistake, he was considered damaged goods ever since he walked out on the Under-19 team years ago because he missed home and his family. The Seville native suffers from chronic homesickness, leading to anxiety attacks and seizures.
Such a condition prevented a dream move to Chelsea back in 2006 and has kept him out of the frame for his country at senior level, despite his growing reputation. But the turning point came this summer when Navas, after initially refusing, took part in Sevilla's preseason camp in the United States, and he has worked with team psychologists to rid himself of all his emotional baggage.
National team boss Vicente Del Bosque says he is sufficiently convinced Navas' problems are behind him, but even if Del Bosque had any lingering doubts, his form this season makes him just about worth the risk. Navas' speed with the ball is a destabilizing weapon few teams can cope with, and the only ones suffering anxiety attacks these days are opposing defenders at the sight of Navas heading their way.
In the victory over Madrid, Navas effectively ended Marcelo's hopes of playing left back for Brazil at the World Cup. He has chipped in with important goals, but his ability to create chances for strikers Frederic Kanoute and Luis Fabiano is what makes him truly indispensable and why Sevilla's hopes of making La Liga a three-horse race largely rest on his shoulders.
The emergence of Navas has been one of many interesting stories in the first quarter of the season, and while the FIFA virus might be hitting at an inopportune time, it does provide a pause for reflection.
Don Quixote (Player Of The Season So Far) – David Villa, Valencia
World Soccer magazine rates him as the best striker on the planet, and you'll get no argument from Valencia fans, as Villa is off to another fantastic start with eight goals in nine league games. El Guaje tops the scoring charts in Spain and it would take a brave man to bet against him capturing the Pichichi, especially given the kind of service he figures to receive.
Unai Emery's side has been a delight to watch. Thanks to a wonderful midfield that features talented players like Juan Mata, Pablo Hernandez and Ever Banega, Valencia is able to knock the ball around with ease and exploit any holes in the opposition. And most of the slick passing moves end with Villa.
His importance to the team was underlined when he sat out the Oct. 17 match against Barcelona at the Mestalla due to injury. Valencia dominated possession and created the better chances but was unable to capitalize and had to settle for a scoreless draw. Anyone who watched the game came away with the unmistakable conclusion that had Villa played, Barca would not be undefeated right now.
The Impossible Dream (Goal Of The Season So Far) – Filipe Luis, Deportivo
The Brazilian left back has been one of the best kept secrets in La Liga. The 24-year-old finally made his debut with the selecao in a World Cup qualifier last month, much to the dismay of both Spain and Poland, who were hoping to lure him away. He scored for the second time this season last Saturday against Getafe, but it was his first goal that made headlines.
Back in the second week of the season, Deportivo was struggling to break down Malaga at the Riazor Stadium when Filipe picked up a ball near midfield, carried it a few yards, and uncorked a missile into the upper corner from long distance. The goal in the 82nd minute gave Deportivo the first of three consecutive victories at home to start the campaign.
Sancho Panza (Unsung Hero Of The Season So Far) – Alcorcon
I'm cheating, I know. Alcorcon is not in La Liga, but the unfashionable third-division side did provide the most shocking result in European soccer in ages with its 4-0 triumph over Real Madrid in the first leg of a Copa del Rey tie. Alcorcon finished the job on Tuesday at the Bernabeu with a composed defensive performance, holding the Merengues to a single goal.
At the final whistle, Real fans took a break from jeering their own team and gave the visitors a much-deserved ovation. Of course, we'll never know if the outcome would have been different with Sergio Ramos on the field. Believe or not, Manuel Pellegrini left the right back out of the lineup, mistakenly thinking he was suspended for the match when he actually wasn't.
Rocinante (Goat Of The Season So Far) – Atletico Madrid, Villarreal
I'd hate to give an Atletico Madrid supporter this much credit, but if the motivation for throwing a stone at Manuel Pellegrini last week was to induce some sort of stadium ban, you almost can't blame the fan. This season has been that bad. One victory in 10 league games has Atletico in the relegation zone, and the coaching switch from Abel Resino to Quique Flores hasn't brought much improvement.
The defense was expected to be bad, but the strike partnership of Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan has also been a huge letdown. Aguero recently went more than 600 minutes without a goal in all competitions, and Forlan, last season's Golden Boot winner, is suffering through a nightmarish season.
As for Villarreal, Pellegrini can take solace in the fact that his former team sorely misses him. The yellow submarine have shown signs of life the past couple of weeks but are still languishing in 16th place under new manager Ernesto Valverde. Giuseppe Rossi has been in poor form this season and one league goal is a disappointing return so far from record-signing Nilmar.
David Mosse, Goal.com
For more on Spain click ahead to Goal.com's Spain homepage
Since 2006, the club has won two UEFA Cup titles, a Copa del Rey, and finished in the top five in the league each and every season. Not too shabby when you consider how little money has been spent in the transfer market. In fact, most of the business done the past few years has been selling important players to its fiercest rivals – Sergio Ramos, Daniel Alves, Seydou Keita.
The question this season was whether Sevilla -- or anyone else for that matter -- could possibly hang with the Big Two. The answer so far is a resounding yes. Manolo Jimenez's team sits just four points behind leaders Barcelona, and three points adrift of Real Madrid. Sevilla is also the only Spanish side through to the knockout stages of the Champions League (though Real Madrid and Barcelona will likely still progress).
Madrid has already been conquered, as Sevilla notched a not-as-close-as-the-score 2-1 win over the Merengues on Oct. 4 at the Ramon Sanchez Pizjuan Stadium. The star of the show that night was Jesus Navas, who contributed the first goal with a soaring header and terrorized Madrid's defense all game long with his rampaging runs down the right side.
Navas was on target in the 1-1 draw against Stuttgart that sealed Sevilla's passage to the knockout stages of the Champions League and opened the scoring this past Tuesday in the second leg of a Copa del Rey tie against Atletico Ciudad. In many ways, this has been his season so far, as the 23-year-old is finally harnessing all his potential and becoming a full-blown star.
It is a measure of how well he has performed that earlier this week, Navas was included in Spain's squad for the friendlies against Argentina and Austria. Make no mistake, he was considered damaged goods ever since he walked out on the Under-19 team years ago because he missed home and his family. The Seville native suffers from chronic homesickness, leading to anxiety attacks and seizures.
Such a condition prevented a dream move to Chelsea back in 2006 and has kept him out of the frame for his country at senior level, despite his growing reputation. But the turning point came this summer when Navas, after initially refusing, took part in Sevilla's preseason camp in the United States, and he has worked with team psychologists to rid himself of all his emotional baggage.
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In the victory over Madrid, Navas effectively ended Marcelo's hopes of playing left back for Brazil at the World Cup. He has chipped in with important goals, but his ability to create chances for strikers Frederic Kanoute and Luis Fabiano is what makes him truly indispensable and why Sevilla's hopes of making La Liga a three-horse race largely rest on his shoulders.
The emergence of Navas has been one of many interesting stories in the first quarter of the season, and while the FIFA virus might be hitting at an inopportune time, it does provide a pause for reflection.
Don Quixote (Player Of The Season So Far) – David Villa, Valencia
World Soccer magazine rates him as the best striker on the planet, and you'll get no argument from Valencia fans, as Villa is off to another fantastic start with eight goals in nine league games. El Guaje tops the scoring charts in Spain and it would take a brave man to bet against him capturing the Pichichi, especially given the kind of service he figures to receive.
Unai Emery's side has been a delight to watch. Thanks to a wonderful midfield that features talented players like Juan Mata, Pablo Hernandez and Ever Banega, Valencia is able to knock the ball around with ease and exploit any holes in the opposition. And most of the slick passing moves end with Villa.
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The Brazilian left back has been one of the best kept secrets in La Liga. The 24-year-old finally made his debut with the selecao in a World Cup qualifier last month, much to the dismay of both Spain and Poland, who were hoping to lure him away. He scored for the second time this season last Saturday against Getafe, but it was his first goal that made headlines.
Back in the second week of the season, Deportivo was struggling to break down Malaga at the Riazor Stadium when Filipe picked up a ball near midfield, carried it a few yards, and uncorked a missile into the upper corner from long distance. The goal in the 82nd minute gave Deportivo the first of three consecutive victories at home to start the campaign.
Sancho Panza (Unsung Hero Of The Season So Far) – Alcorcon
I'm cheating, I know. Alcorcon is not in La Liga, but the unfashionable third-division side did provide the most shocking result in European soccer in ages with its 4-0 triumph over Real Madrid in the first leg of a Copa del Rey tie. Alcorcon finished the job on Tuesday at the Bernabeu with a composed defensive performance, holding the Merengues to a single goal.
At the final whistle, Real fans took a break from jeering their own team and gave the visitors a much-deserved ovation. Of course, we'll never know if the outcome would have been different with Sergio Ramos on the field. Believe or not, Manuel Pellegrini left the right back out of the lineup, mistakenly thinking he was suspended for the match when he actually wasn't.
Rocinante (Goat Of The Season So Far) – Atletico Madrid, Villarreal
I'd hate to give an Atletico Madrid supporter this much credit, but if the motivation for throwing a stone at Manuel Pellegrini last week was to induce some sort of stadium ban, you almost can't blame the fan. This season has been that bad. One victory in 10 league games has Atletico in the relegation zone, and the coaching switch from Abel Resino to Quique Flores hasn't brought much improvement.
The defense was expected to be bad, but the strike partnership of Sergio Aguero and Diego Forlan has also been a huge letdown. Aguero recently went more than 600 minutes without a goal in all competitions, and Forlan, last season's Golden Boot winner, is suffering through a nightmarish season.
As for Villarreal, Pellegrini can take solace in the fact that his former team sorely misses him. The yellow submarine have shown signs of life the past couple of weeks but are still languishing in 16th place under new manager Ernesto Valverde. Giuseppe Rossi has been in poor form this season and one league goal is a disappointing return so far from record-signing Nilmar.
David Mosse, Goal.com
For more on Spain click ahead to Goal.com's Spain homepage
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