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| cityofbirth = [[Tuilla]]
| cityofbirth = [[Tuilla]]
| countryofbirth = [[Spain]]
| countryofbirth = [[Spain]]
| currentclub = [[Valencia]]
| currentclub = [[Valencia CF]]
| clubnumber = 7
| clubnumber = 7
| position = [[Striker]]
| position = [[Striker]]

Revision as of 16:37, 2 February 2009

David Villa
Personal information
Full name David Villa
Height 1.75 m (5 ft 9 in)
Position(s) Striker
Team information
Current team
 Valencia CF
Number 7
‡ National team caps and goals, correct as of 19 November 2008

Template:Spanish name 2 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 C.F. and Spain.

He started his career with Sporting de Gijón and progressed through their youth ranks and B-team. He made his professional debut in 2000 in Spain's Segunda Division. He moved to Real Zaragoza after two seasons, leaving Gijón with a total of 38 goals in 80. Thanks to Zaragoza, he made his debut in La Liga and a succesful spell saw him scoring 31 goals in 73 appearances. He joined his current club Valencia in 2005 for a transfer fee of €12 million. He became second top scorer in La Liga season 2005/06 with 25 goals, just one behind that year's top scorer, Samuel Eto'o.

He is also a Spanish international and made his debut for the team against San Marino in 2005. He has since participated in two major tournaments; 2006 FIFA World Cup and UEFA Euro 2008. He scored three goals at the 2006 World Cup and was top scorer at Euro 2008 with 4 goals despite missing two games including the final. He has currently scored 24 goals in his 41 appearances for the national team making him the 5th top scorer of all time for Spain and also their 6th most effective goal scorer with a goal ratio of 0.58 goals per game.

Club career

Childhood and 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]

Villa admitted that he came close to giving up football at the age of 14 after growing disillusioned and falling out with his coach. However, thanks to his parents encouragement, he carried on pursuing his dream and realised his talent could earn him a living.[4]

"In those days I was a nobody, not earning a penny and after being made to sit on the bench all season I just wanted to get away and play with my friends" he said. "But my dad always supported me and cheered me up until my career turned round."[5]

He began his footballing career at UP Langreo.[6] Due to an injury that he suffered to his right leg he began to work on strengthening his left leg and ultimately became an ambidextrous footballer.[7] When he turned 17 he joined the Mareo football school.[8]

Villa was receiving interest from many Asturian teams, however one of the province's bigger teams, Real Oviedo, did not show any interest and declared that they did not believe he had suficient potential.[9] He subsequently got his professional breakthrough at his local club Sporting de Gijón, following in the footsteps of his childhood idol Quini.[10] He made his first-team debut in the 2000–01 season after rising through the teams youth ranks and B-team. The next season he was a first team regular, scoring 18 league goals, and 20 the next season.

After scoring 40 goals in just three seasons at Gijón,[11] 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.[12] 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 which resulted in Zaragoza fans inventing the football chant "illa illa illa, Villa maravilla" which is a play on the words "Villa" and "maravilla" which can be translated into marvel, wonderful, to work wonders (in verbal form), or great.[13]

Valencia

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.[14]

In the 2005-06 season, he scored 25 goals in 35 league matches for Valencia,[15] 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.[16]

In October, 2006 he was included among the 50 nominees for the Ballon d'Or (often referred to as the European Footballer of the Year Award).[17]

David Villa converting a penalty against Sevilla FC

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.[18][19] 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.[20]

On his 100th league appearance for Valencia, Villa scored a hat-trick against Levante; his 54th, 55th and 56th league goals for the club.[21] 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[22]

La Liga 2007-08 was not easy for nor for Villa nor for his team mates, he did, however, manage to see the back of the net 18 times.[23] He also won his first trophy with Valencia, winning the Copa del Rey for the second time in his career, beating FC Barcelona 3-2 in the semi-finals and then Getafe CF 3-1 in the final.[24] giving the team a place in the UEFA Cup.[25]

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.[26]

In October, 2008, Kaká praised Villa, speaking to Canal+, he claimed that Villa is "the best Spanish footballer" adding that "The player with whom I would most like to play is David Villa of Valencia."[27]

On December 2, 2008, Villa came 7th in the Ballon d'Or 2008 rankings[28] and on 12 January, 2009, Villa was announced as the 9th best player of 2008, according to the 2008 FIFA World Player of the Year awards.

Currently, Villa is second top scorer in La Liga with 17 goals in 20 games (plus 4 assists), behind Samuel Eto'o, who has 19.[29]

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,[30] and also put Spain 1-0 up against France in the Round of 16, although Spain went on to lose the match 3-1.[31] Him and Fernando Torres finished as Spain's top scorers with three goals each.

File:David Villa 29-6-08.png
David Villa celebrating Spain's triumph at Euro 2008

By the end of 2006, Villa had become an integral part of the Spain team and ousted Raúl González from the team.[32] 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.[33] 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[34] and was awarded the Golden Boot.[35] He also made the UEFA Euro 2008 Team of the Tournament[36]

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).[37]

Personal life

Although he prefers to keep his personal life out of the spotlight due to his discreet and introverted personality, it was still publicised that 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.[38] He has his daughter's and wife's names engraved on his personalised Adidas F50's,[39] while one boot bears the Spanish flag, while the other has the Asturian flag.

He is the owner of a Porsche Cayenne, a five-seat mid-size luxury sport utility vehicle.[40]

Statistics

All stats correct as of February 1, 2009

Club

Template:Football player statistics 1 Template:Football player statistics 2 |- |2000-01||rowspan="3"|Sporting de Gijón||rowspan="3"|Segunda División ||1||0||colspan="2"|-||colspan="2"|-||1||0 |- |2001-02||40||18||4||2||colspan="2"|-||44||20 |- |2002-03||39||20||1||0||colspan="2"|-||40||20 |- |2003-04||rowspan="2"|Real Zaragoza||rowspan="2"|La Liga ||38||16||8||4||colspan="2"|-||46||21 |- |2004-05||35||15||1||0||10||3||46||18 |- |2005-06||rowspan="4"|Valencia CF||rowspan="4"|La Liga ||35||25||4||2||colspan="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||20||17||2||1||3||1||25||19 Template:Football player statistics 5 269|| 145|| 28|| 10 ||29|| 12||326|| 168 |}

International

National team Season Apps Goals
Spain 2004–05 1 0
2005–06 14 5
2006–07 10 8
2007–08 9 6
2008–09 7 6
Total 41 24
David Villa: International Goals
# Date Venue Opponent Score Result Competition
1. 16 November 2005 Tehelné pole, Bratislava, Slovakia  Slovakia 1–1 1–1 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
2. 1 March 2006 Estadio José Zorrilla, Valladolid, Spain  Ivory Coast 1–1 3–2 2006 FIFA World Cup qualification
3. 13 June 2006 Zentralstadion, Leipzig, Germany  Ukraine 2–0 4–0 2006 FIFA World Cup
4. 13 June 2006 Zentralstadion, Leipzig, Germany  Ukraine 3–0 4–0 2006 FIFA World Cup
5. 27 June 2006 AWD-Arena, Hannover, Germany  France 1–0 1–3 2006 FIFA World Cup
6. 2 September 2006 Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz, Spain  Liechtenstein 2–0 4–0 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
7. 2 September 2006 Estadio Nuevo Vivero, Badajoz, Spain  Liechtenstein 3–0 4–0 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
8. 6 September 2006 Windsor Park, Belfast, Northern Ireland  Northern Ireland 1–2 3–2 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
9. 11 October 2006 Nueva Condomina, Murcia, Spain  Argentina 2–1 2–1 International Friendly
10. 24 March 2007 Santiago Bernabéu, Madrid, Spain  Denmark 2–0 2–1 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
11. 2 June 2007 Skonto stadions, Riga, Latvia  Latvia 0–1 0–2 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
12. 6 June 2007 Rheinpark Stadion, Vaduz, Liechtenstein  Liechtenstein 0–1 0–2 UEFA Euro 2008 Qualifying
13. 26 March 2008 Manuel Martínez Valero, Elche, Spain  Italy 1–0 1–0 International Friendly
14. 31 May 2008 Nuevo Colombino, Huelva, Spain  Peru 1–0 2–1 International Friendly
15. 10 June 2008 Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria  Russia 1–0 4–1 UEFA Euro 2008
16. 10 June 2008 Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria  Russia 2–0 4–1 UEFA Euro 2008
17. 10 June 2008 Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria  Russia 3–0 4–1 UEFA Euro 2008
18. 14 June 2008 Tivoli Neu, Innsbruck, Austria  Sweden 1–2 1–2 UEFA Euro 2008
19. 6 September 2008 Nueva Condomina, Murcia, Spain  Bosnia and Herzegovina 1–0 1–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
20. 10 September 2008 Estadio Carlos Belmonte, Albacete, Spain  Armenia 2–0 4–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
21. 10 September 2008 Estadio Carlos Belmonte, Albacete, Spain  Armenia 3–0 4–0 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
22. 11 October 2008 A. Le Coq Arena, Tallinn, Estonia  Estonia 0–2 0–3 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
23. 15 October 2008 King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels, Belgium  Belgium 1–2 1–2 2010 FIFA World Cup qualification
24. 19 November 2008 El Madrigal, Villarreal, Spain  Chile 1–0 3–0 International Friendly

Honours

Club

Country

Individual

References

  1. ^ Diccionariu
  2. ^ Villa, a thriller
  3. ^ Profile and Career History of David Villa
  4. ^ Villa, a thriller
  5. ^ Villa, a thriller
  6. ^ David Villa Official Website
  7. ^ David Villa Official Website
  8. ^ David Villa Official Website
  9. ^ David Villa Official Website
  10. ^ David Villa Official Website
  11. ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
  12. ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
  13. ^ David Villa Official Website
  14. ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
  15. ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
  16. ^ Villa, a thriller
  17. ^ VILLA (David Villa Sánchez)- Valencia and Spain
  18. ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
  19. ^ Fernando Morientes Stats, News - Valencia
  20. ^ Valencia 1 Chelsea 2 (Chelsea win 3-2 on agg): Last-gasp Essien seals Chelsea's sweetest victory
  21. ^ Levante 1 - 5 Valencia
  22. ^ David Villa Stats, News - Valencia
  23. ^ David Villa Official Website
  24. ^ Valencia 3-1 Getafe
  25. ^ David Villa Official Website
  26. ^ Villa signs new 6 year contract Retrieved 28 August 2008
  27. ^ David Villa Official Website
  28. ^ Ronaldo wins Ballon d'Or
  29. ^ Primera Division | Stats
  30. ^ Spain 4-0 Ukraine
  31. ^ Spain 1-3 France
  32. ^ Tournement - Players - 7 - David Villa
  33. ^ Absent Villa takes scoring prize
  34. ^ Absent Villa takes scoring prize
  35. ^ adidas Golden Boot goes to Villa
  36. ^ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com. 2008-06-30. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
  37. ^ Villa, mejor goleador de la selección en un año natural Template:Sp icon
  38. ^ 10 Things you need to know about David Villa
  39. ^ David Villa Official Website
  40. ^ Villa, a thriller
  41. ^ "Spain dominate Team of the Tournament". UEFA.com. 2008-06-30. Retrieved 2008-06-30.
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