VILLARREAL CF: AGAINST ALL ODDS.
Villarreal is just another tiny town in the soulful country of Spain. A nation that embraces football as a culture, as a religion, and has made the sport a treat for the eyes over the years. In a land that has produced legends of the game such as Sergio Ramos, Pep Guardiola, Carles Puyol, Iker Casillas, Andres Iniesta, Xavi and David Villa; a town like Villarreal would go relatively unnoticed among giants such as Barcelona and Madrid. The Valencian city is located in the east of Spain and has a population of a mere 50,000. Their club was founded in 1923 and spent most years in the Spanish second division. The ‘Submarino Amarillo’ made their La Liga debut only in 1998, and from then onwards began their rise in the world of football.
Villarreal began the season with big aspirations and a potent squad under the managerial guidance of Unai Emery, a very successful manager in Europe. Having finished the previous season in fifth, the team was itching to go again and was always going to be a threat. They got off the mark quickly in the league and looked like top contenders for the Champions League spot right from the beginning. But with the longevity and exhaustion that the La Liga brings every year, injuries hampered Villarreal’s hopes. The Europa League was now Emery’s best bet at capturing another major trophy and making it to Europe’s top flight. As all fairy tales go, he did exactly that and guided his men to victory, to claim his fourth Europa League title — the most decorated manager of the league.
The “Yellow Submarines” got through the group stage relatively unscathed, and then outclassed the likes of Salzburg, Arsenal and Manchester United to lift the trophy. Villarreal possesses an extremely flexible group of players, and most often play in a 4–4–2 formation, but occasionally in a 4–1–4–1 or a 4–3–3. With a good press and solid defensive capabilities, the Spanish breakouts were ruthless for the better part of the year. Their biggest weapon throughout the course of 2020–21 was striker Gerard Moreno, who wreaked havoc in the final third and consistently found the back of the net. Unai Emery also found a dominant duo on the right flank in Juan Foyth and Samuel Chukwueze, and central defenders Raul Albiol and Pau Torres were a wall in defence.
The story of Villarreal is the essence of the beauty that football, and sport in general, brings to us. The one that works smart and perseveres will come out victorious. Such are the narratives that the controversial European Super League would have diminished, dragging along with it the emotions of millions of fans who witnessed the tremendous fall and rise of their respective teams. The “underdog victory” would never be spoken of again. Unai Emery and his yellow army proved to the world again that it is not always the club with the big name that produces the big game. In an era where Spanish football seems to be on a gradual decline after dominating European football for over a decade, Villarreal proved that the intricate style of football that Spain has nurtured over the years will always claw its way to the top and portray the supreme quality that the La Liga brings to the table! It was a triumph for the ages and a lesson to keep fighting and to never write anyone off!
