David Villa
All you want to know about David Villa
David Villa Sánchez (born 3 December 1981 in the municipality of Langreo, Asturias, Spain), nicknamed El Guaje[1] (The Kid in Asturian) is a Spanish football player, who currently plays for Valencia CF and Spain.
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Early career
Born in Tuilla, an small village of Asturias, region in Northern Spain, the son of a miner,[2] his professional career was put in jeopardy at the age of four when he was left limp after suffering a severe fracture to his femur, but thanks to a non-invasive approach he was able to make a complete recovery.[3] He got his professional breakthrough at his local club Sporting de Gijón, for whom he made his first-team debut in the 2000–01 season. The next season he was a first team regular, scoring 18 league goals, and scored 20 the next season. After over 50 goals in just three seasons at Gijón,[4] he got his chance in Spain's top-flight La Liga, when promoted Real Zaragoza bought him in the summer of 2003. He had no trouble adapting to the step up in class and scored 17 times in his first season at Zaragoza.[5] Villa led Zaragoza to a Copa del Rey victory scoring a crucial goal against Real Madrid.
Soon after he earned his first international call-up and cap, David Villa made his big move to one of Spanish football's heavyweights as Valencia parted with €12 million (£8.2 million) to secure his services in the summer of 2005.[6]
Valencia
In the 2005-06 season, he scored 25 goals in 35 league matches for Valencia,[7] to finish 1 goal behind the league's top scorer Samuel Eto'o of Barcelona. Villa scored a remarkable goal against Deportivo La Coruna at the Riazor, hitting the ball from the half way line it sailed over the keepers head and into the net. He scored his first hat-trick for Valencia against Athletic Bilbao at San Mamés in La Liga on the 23 April 2006. Villa managed the hat trick in just over 5 minutes (80th to the 85th minute) making it one of the quickest hat-tricks ever recorded. Valencia won that game 0-3.[8]
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Villa's form continued into the 2006–07 season, with the striker forming a prolific partnership up front with former Real Madrid star Fernando Morientes. Together, Villa and Morientes netted around 40 goals in all competitions.[9][10] He scored a free kick goal in the 2nd round of the Champions League against Inter Milan which helped lead Valencia through to the quarter finals where they eventually lost to Chelsea FC.[11]
On his 100th league appearance for Valencia, Villa scored a hat-trick against Levante; his 54th, 55th and 56th league goals for the club.[12] Another two goals on the final day of the season against Atletico Madrid meant he finished the season with 18 league goals from 27 games, despite the teams poor performance of a 10th placed finish in La Liga[13]
In 2007-2008 he also won his first trophy with Valencia, winning the Copa del Rey, beating FC Barcelona 3-2 in the semi-finals and then Getafe CF 3-1 in the final.[14]
He signed a new six-year contract at the Mestalla. The 26-year-old ended speculation over his future by putting pen to paper on a deal which ties him to Valencia until 2014.[15]
Currently, Villa is second top scorer in La Liga with 13 goals in 17 games (plus 2 assists), behind Samuel Eto'o, who has 14.[16]
International career
Villa marked his international debut under Luis Aragonés on 9 February 2005 in a 2006 World Cup Qualifier where Spain beat San Marino 5-0 at the Estadio del Mediterráneo.
Brilliant form for Valencia saw him get called up as part of the 23-man squad to represent Spain at the 2006 FIFA World Cup. In Spain's first match at the tournement, a 4-0 win against Ukraine, Villa netted a brace,[17] and also put Spain 1-0 up against France in the Round of 16, although Spain went on to lose the match 3-1.[18] Him and Fernando Torres finished as Spain's top scorers with three goals each.
By the end of 2006, Villa had become an integral part of the Spain team and ousted Raúl González from the team.[19] Proving vital in Spain's qualification for Euro 2008, he was subsequently called up for the tournement. He scored a hat-trick in Spain's 4-1 win over Russia, making him the first player to hit a hat-trick at a UEFA European Championship since Patrick Kluivert in 2000, and only the seventh overall.[20] In the next match, he secured a 2-1 win against Sweden with a goal in the 92nd minute. In the quarter finals, the Spain and Italy match was decided by penalties which Spain won 4-2, Villa took the first penalty and scored.
Spain once again met Russia in the semi-final, however, during the early stages of the match, Villa withstained a thigh injury after taking a free kick and as a result missed the final where Spain beat Germany 1-0 to claim their second win at the European Football Championships. Despite missing the final and the majority of the semi-final, Villa's 4 goals in the 4 games he played were enough for him to be top scorer of the tournement[21] and was awarded the Golden Boot.[22] He also made the UEFA Euro 2008 Team of the Tournament[23]
Such a successful year with the Spanish national football team saw Villa break the Spanish record of 10 goals in one year held by Raúl González since 1999 by scoring 12 goals (including the four that were scored at Euro 2008).[24]
Personal life
In 2003, Villa married his childhood sweetheart Patricia (who had also been a footballer in her teenage years). On 7 December 2005, their first child was born, a girl who they named Zaida.[25]
Statistics
All stats correct as of January 6, 2009
Club
| Club performance | League | Cup | Continental | Total | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Club | League | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals | Apps | Goals |
| Spain | League | Copa del Rey | Europe | Total | ||||||
| 2000-01 | Sporting de Gijón | Segunda División | 1 | 0 | - | - | 1 | 0 | ||
| 2001-02 | 40 | 18 | 4 | 2 | - | 44 | 20 | |||
| 2002-03 | 39 | 20 | 1 | 0 | - | 40 | 20 | |||
| 2003-04 | Real Zaragoza | La Liga | 38 | 16 | 8 | 4 | - | 46 | 21 | |
| 2004-05 | 35 | 15 | 1 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 46 | 18 | ||
| 2005-06 | Valencia CF | La Liga | 35 | 25 | 4 | 2 | - | 39 | 27 | |
| 2006-07 | 35 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 47 | 21 | ||
| 2007-08 | 26 | 18 | 6 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 38 | 22 | ||
| 2008-09 | 17 | 13 | - | 3 | 1 | 20 | 16 | |||
| Career Total | 266 | 141 | 26 | 9 | 29 | 12 | 318 | 160 | ||
National Team
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Honours
Club
Country
Individual
References
- ^ Diccionariu
- ^ Villa, a thriller
- ^ Profile and Career History of David Villa
- ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
- ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
- ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
- ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
- ^ Villa, a thriller
- ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
- ^ Fernando Morientes Stats, News - Valencia
- ^ Valencia 1 Chelsea 2 (Chelsea win 3-2 on agg): Last-gasp Essien seals Chelsea's sweetest victory
- ^ Levante 1 - 5 Valencia
- ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
- ^ Valencia 3-1 Getafe
- ^ Villa signs new 6 year contract Retrieved 28 August 2008
- ^ Primera Division | Stats
- ^ Spain 4-0 Ukraine
- ^ Spain 1-3 France
- ^ Tournement - Players - 7 - David Villa
- ^ Absent Villa takes scoring prize
- ^ Absent Villa takes scoring prize
- ^ adidas Golden Boot goes to Villa
- ^ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com (2008-06-30). Retrieved on 2008-06-30.
- ^ Villa, mejor goleador de la selección en un año natural (Spanish)
- ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
- ^ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com (2008-06-30). Retrieved on 2008-06-30.
External links
- Official Site (Spanish)
- David Villa on Flickr
- David Villa FIFA competition record
- David Villa Stats on ESPN
- Player stats at www.lfp.es
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