With the quarter mark of the 2014/15 Spanish La Liga campaign all but upon us, we take a look back at the season so far, to compile a ‘Best XI’ of the the league’s stand-out performers up until this point.
GK – Claudio Bravo, FC Barcelona: It would be fair to say the Chilean goalkeeper’s summer signing wasn’t initally met with a great deal of enthusiasm in Catalonia. Barcelona had already signed Marc-André ter Stegen earlier in the year, while the €12 million fee that the club paid for him was deemed to be ‘overpriced for a back-up’. As of week nine in La Liga, Bravo has started all nine games and conceded just three goals, all of which came in last weekend’s Clásico. Before that particular game, the 31-year-old had gone 754 minutes without conceding a goal from the opening day against Elche – while in turn, breaking a club record previously held by Pedro Artola for over thirty years. Of course, a large portion of the credit must also go to the Barcelona defence for Bravo’s record, but the Chilean has undoubtedly played his part. After making a couple of mistakes in pre-season, the former Real Sociedad man has been largely impeccable since the start of the league campaign – adapting extremely well to the alternative requirements that must be adhered to when wearing the goalkeeper shirt of Barcelona, while seamlessly continuing the excellent form that he displayed for Chile at this summer’s World Cup.
RB – Mario Gaspar, Villarreal CF: The young full-back has become renowned for his under-the-radar consistency at El Madrigal in recent seasons, and it’s been business as usual for him so far. Despite not even being 24-years-old yet, Mario has already amassed 182 appearances for Villarreal and looks set for many more in the future. Just a fortnight ago, he was handed a new four-year contract, extending his stay until 2019 at his boyhood club (previous contract ran until 2015). A glowing endorsement of just how highly he is valued at Villarreal. With seven starts to his name in the league so far, his selection is firmly one of Marcelino’s priorities in the current team. And even though he’s one of the younger players in the team, the right back is gradually taking on more of a leading role at the club, due to the exemplary commitment and consistency he continues to show. If it were not for the endless list of elite Spanish full backs currently knocking on Vicente Del Bosque’s proverbial door, Mario would surely be staking a genuine claim to earn his first senior cap. Whether the call ultimately comes or not, it doesn’t take away from the fact he continues to be one of La Liga’s standout performers in the right back position.
CB – Nicolas Otamendi, Valencia CF: With the glitz and glamour surrounding Valencia’s electrifying form this season, it would be unfortunate for their defence to be overlooked – a group which Nicolas Otamendi has been firmly the heartbeat of. The fiery Argentinean has been nothing short of spectacular so far. Just nine games into his Valencia career, he is already a firm fans favourite at Mestalla, and has drawn speculative comparisons to fellow Argentine defender and Valencia legend Roberto Ayala. Had the 26-year-old not been ferried out on loan to Atletico Mineiro immediately after signing for Valencia in February (amid LFP registration issues), his form would surely have seen him play a part in Alejandro Sabella’s World Cup squad. Valencia is a club that has seen some outstanding players come and go over the years, but the desire and hunger that Otamendi has displayed so far, alongside his apparent quality, has made him an unexpected cult hero in Spain’s third largest city. And it’s just as well that Peter Lim’s presence in Valencia is now confirmed, or they’d be fending off some serious interest for him in coming transfer windows.
CB – Jeremy Mathieu, FC Barcelona: Much like Claudio Bravo, Jeremy Mathieu’s arrival at Barcelona in the summer wasn’t exactly celebrated in the streets outside Camp Nou. €20 million for a defender who was verging on 31-years-old, while there appeared to be a number of other compatible candidates available, hardly whetted the appetite of Culés worldwide. For people who had followed his time at Valencia ahead of the transfer, it was well-known that Mathieu was a dependable defender for a team at the healthier end of the table, but doubts remained if he was ready to begin a new chapter in his career (at his age), where he’d be expected to become an integral figure at a club with such expectations. Of the eight games that Mathieu has started at centre back for Barcelona so far, the team are yet to concede a goal. The Frenchman was deployed at left back by Luis Enrique in last weekend’s Clásico, while Barcelona subsequently went on to concede three goals. When operating in the middle, Mathieu has been excellent, bringing the centre back presence that the club have been screaming for, for a number of years now. And just like Claudio Bravo, his transition towards the Barcelona brand of football has been as smooth as Luis Enrique could have ever hoped.
LB – José Luis Gayá, Valencia CF: Despite a summer in which the club has seen multiple high-profile signings arrive for a considerable amount of cash, 19-year-old youth product José Luis Gayá has not been overshadowed in any way. The left back had just one league start to his name for Valencia ahead of the new campaign, but has started all nine of their games under new boss Nuno Espírito Santo. Even with the millions of pounds available to him via Peter Lim’s fortune, Nuno placed his trust in Gayá in the left back position from the beginning of his tenure, and has been handsomely rewarded thus far. Paterna (Valencia’s academy) has an ever-growing reputation for producing first rate left backs, with Jordi Alba and Juan Bernat being their most recent examples, while Gayá is also showing all the hallmarks of sharing similar status in the future. And even with the bar set very high in terms of his competition, many believe that Gayá has the potential to surpass those that have gone before him. From watching his consistently astute performances at the top level so far, it’s not difficult to see why the Mestalla faithful have tremendous hopes for Gayá.
CM – Grzegorz Krychowiak, Sevilla FC:After just eight starts in Spain’s top flight division, the Polish international is already proving to be another one in the long line of spectacular recruits by Sevilla’s Sporting Director ‘Monchi’. The void left by Ivan Rakitić in the summer was seen as a large cause of concern for the club at the time, but another summer of shrewd business by the 46-year-old has steadied the ship in Seville once more. At the forefront of said ship, lies the Polish international Grzegorz Krychowiak. The imposing midfielder has been truly colossal for Unai Emery’s team through the first quarter of the campaign. The responsibility of covering Rakitić’s influence has been more dispersed around the team so far, leaving Krychowiak to concentrate on implementing his own game, as opposed to trying to individually replicate that of the former Sevilla captain. These are conditions that have allowed the 24-year-old to flourish in his first taste of Spanish football, dominating in his deep midfield role, while bringing real aggression and intensity to the team led by Unai Emery – a manager that has long been associated with his demand for those particular attributes.
CM – André Gomes, Valencia CF: Even considering the vast amount of quality that Valencia brought in during the summer, making a case for André Gomes being the pick of the bunch wouldn’t be far wide of the mark, in my opinion. The 21-year-old was fairly unheard of at the time of his switch from Benfica, but it hasn’t taken long for him to really demonstrate his abilities in La Liga. Gómes only had seven league starts for Benfica before his arrival, and considering his age and lack of experience at the top level, a settling in period for the young midfielder was certainly expected. But if it ever existed, it was a mighty short one. The recently-capped Portuguese international has been superb in every facet of his midfield play so far. Whether it’s passing, dribbling, tackling, or even adding goals to his game – Gómes appears to have some serious tools in his locker. His early understanding with Dani Parejo and Javi Fuego in Valencia’s midfield trio has been like clockwork from the moment they kicked off their season. The only game that Gómes has missed this season was simultaneously their only defeat so far, and a heavy 3-0 one at that. Of course, his absence wasn’t the sole reason for such a loss, but the dynamism of Valencia’s midfield clearly lacked its usual spark without the 21-year-old in there.
CM – Luka Modrić, Real Madrid CF: After a tough start to the season for Real Madrid, it’s taken some calm heads to steady the ship for the European champions. When that’s the order of the day, the little Croatian is arguably one of the best candidates in world football. Composure has largely been the focus of his time in Madrid as a whole, in fact. Cast your mind back a few seasons, back to a time when Modrić wasn’t appreciated at the Bernabéu and he was voted the “worst signing of the season” by readers of MARCA newspaper. The following season, he went on to scoop La Liga’s “best midfielder award”. So when early problems arose for Carlo Ancelotti, there were reasons behind why he remained so calm and confident in the resurgence of his team. And that’s because of players like Modrić. The midfield maestro has started eight of Real Madrid’s games so far, and while the likes of Isco have stolen the headlines in recent weeks, I can’t look past the balance and control that Modrić has exuded from the beginning of Real Madrid’s ruthless fightback.
ST – Lionel Messi, FC Barcelona: Whether either of them admit it or not, the Argentinean maestro has seen a slight tweaking of his role under Luis Enrique, but his impact has been as devastating as always. As we approach the quarter point of the season, Messi has seven goals (second best in the league) and seven assists (best in the league) to his name. While players at the pinnacle of footballing world like Messi are often increasingly adjudged on stats alone, the 27-year-old’s overall influence on this current Barcelona team cannot be deciphered purely through numbers. For example, in his slightly deeper, more creative role, the impact that he has had on Neymar’s game (nine goals so far) is best appreciated when watched in it’s live workings. Stats simply cannot capture the wonderful synchronicity that the pair have displayed so far this season. And while Messi’s goalscoring numbers are down from his usual remarkable tally, his role in this team is still as instrumental as ever, no matter what aspect he’s contributing in.
ST – Paco Alcácer, Valencia CF: There have been few quicker rises to the Spanish football spotlight than Paco Alcácer in recent times. The 21-year-old laid the groundwork at the back end of last season – especially in Valencia’s Europa League campaign – but his progress has rocketed under the fresh guidance of Nuno Espírito Santo. Alcácer scored six league goals in the entirety of last season but already has four to his name playing as the lead striker in Valencia’s devastating 4-3-3 formation. His movement and understanding of his role has always been a feature of his game, but that appears to have reached a new level in 2014. He has displayed the intelligence of a striker way beyond his years so far, something that recently saw him become a fully fledged Spanish international under Vicente Del Bosque, while some even see him as the more effective option than Diego Costa at present. The way that he has led the line for La Liga’s surprise package so far, at barely twenty-one years of age, is something that I just can’t look past in regards to his inclusion.
ST – Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid CF:Sixteen goals in eight league starts. I could probably end this here. Even by the standards that himself and Lionel Messi have set in recent seasons, his record still remains nothing short of outrageous. After a difficult World Cup with Portugal, there had been lingering doubts about whether Ronaldo’s health was impacting the trajectory of his career, but those doubts have been answered with utter conviction so far. Even when they had got off to a stuttering start at the beginning of the campaign, Ronaldo’s performance did not dwindle, scoring at least a goal in every game he played in, including two hat-tricks and one four-goal haul against Elche. All that within nine games of the season. If the 29-year-old were to carry on in the same vein for the rest of the season, he would call it a day with 74 league goals to his name. It sounds near-impossible, but there was once a time when we thought that about the goalscoring tallies he and Lionel Messi have produced in recent years.
Tell us what you think. Have there been players who you believe have stood out more so far in La Liga?
