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Spanish football’s recent dominance at both the Club and International level over the past few years has been nothing short of extraordinary.
The famous La Masia academy is a conveyor belt of young talent and even their big spending arch rivals in Real Madrid have a few young gems in their squad. Outside the top 2, financial struggles for a few of the teams has meant that younger players are being trusted to deliver the goods. A trust that more often than not is being rewarded.
This is a list of the Top 10 Young La Liga Players who viewers should keep an eye on. To maintain standardisation, only players who are 21 and below (and will remain so until August 31st, 2013) have been included in the list.
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10. Alvaro Vadillo
Age: 18 years old
Club: Real Betis
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Winger
Ever since Vadillo made his debut for Betis at the age of 16, he’s been turning heads with his exciting performances. Dubbed the new Cristiano Ronaldo due to similarities in playing style, the Betis man has been reportedly courted by a number of English clubs but the Betis hierarchy have made it clear that they want him to stay.
9. Ruben Garcia
Ruben Garcia
Age: 20 years old
Club: Levante
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Winger
The second winger to feature on our list, Garcia has come up through the ranks at Levante. Having made 31 league appearances for Levante last season, Garcia will be looking to kick on and play a bigger role this season. Capable of playing on either flank and behind the striker, Garcia is definitely want to watch out for.
8. Haris Seferovic
Haris Seferovic
Age: 21 years old
Club: Real Sociedad
Nationality: Swiss
Position: Striker
The Swiss international has certainly made a fast start to life with Real Sociedad having scored 2 impressive goals in his first 2 competitive games. After enjoying a successful loan spell with Serie B side Novara where he chalked up 10 goals and 6 assists in 18 appearances, the striker was snapped up by Sociedad, a shrewd investment if early signs are anything to go by.
7. Leo Baptistao
Leo Baptistao
Age: 20 years old
Club: Atletico Madrid
Nationality: Brazilian
Position: Striker
Atletico always seem to have a quality striker in their squad be it Torres, Aguero, Forlan or Falcao in recent times. Leo Baptistao will be hoping to be the next name on this list. Having impressed for Rayo last season, Atletico will be banking on him to reproduce some of the form that helped him to score 7 goals and provide 7 assists.
6. Alberto Moreno
Alberto Moreno
Age: 21 years old
Club: Sevilla
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Left-Back
Part of a star studded U-21 National side who were crowned Champions of Europe, Moreno was not one of the headline makers but was an important part of the team both in defence and attack. The Sevilla man will be hoping to top the 15 league appearances of last season and continue his rise.
5. Suso
Suso
Age: 19 years old
Club: Almeria (On Loan from Liverpool)
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Winger
After having made 14 league appearances under Brendan Rodgers at Liverpool last season, Suso has returned to his homeland for a season-long loan to further his development. Having played 90? in the opening game loss to Villaraeal, the exciting young talent will be hoping to play a part in Almeria’s quest to stay in Spain’s top division.
4. Geoffrey Kondogbia
Geoffrey Kondogbia
Age: 20 years old
Club: Sevilla
Nationality: French
Position: Central Midfielder
Few young players in world football are as impressive as Geoffrey Kondogbia. After shining in his debut season for Sevilla, Kondogbia was an integral member of France’s U-20 World Cup winning side this summer. The highly rated midfielder will be a crucial part of Sevilla’s set-up and will also be looking to add to his recent full International cap for France.
3. Alvaro Morata
Alvaro Morata
Age: 20 years old
Club: Real Madrid
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Striker
Morata is a produce of Madrid’s cantera, and is looked at with great expectations. The young Spaniard has performed admirably for Madrid in his limited opportunities, and also scored a few goals at the U21 Euro’s. With the departure of Higuain, Morata will compete with Benzema for a starting spot.
2. Rafinha Alcantara
Rafinha Alcantara
Age: 20 years old
Club: Celta Vigo (On loan from Barcelona)
Nationality: Brazil/Spain
Position: Central Midfielder
Rafinha was born a footballer, being the son of World Cup winner Mazinho (and brother of Bayern star, Thiago). The youngster from the famous La Masia academy, and like his brother, is a midfielder. Last season he played for the Barcelona B team, making one appearance for the senior team, and will spend the season on loan at Celta Vigo, under the watchful eye of Luis Enrique.
1. Daniel Carvajal
Daniel Carvajal
Age: 21 years old
Club: Real Madrid
Nationality: Spanish
Position: Right-Back
La Masia gets all the attention, but Real’s cantera is quite good too. Carvajal is one of their many famous graduates who has made his name away from the Spanish capital. Carvajal was sent to Leverkusen with a buy-back clause, and his performances there spurred the Madridistas to sign him back after just one season. Carvajal is a very talented full back, and will look to nail down his place in the first 11, for both Real and Spain.
Special Mentions
The La Liga is widely considered to be the league with the best superstars of World Football. Last years FIFPro XI consisted of an all-La Liga line up. The Iberian country does possess some of th most technically gifted individuals; and despite facing financial trouble, most clubs manage to produce some of the best young talents.
Real Madrid have gone in for a youthful approach this season; besides the talents mentioned above, Jese and Casemiro are two that could make a name for themselves this coming campaign. Oliver Torres is one talent coming through from the other Madrid, you can read a Scout Report on him here. Valencia’s Paco Alcacer and Juan Bernat have caught our attention as well. Sevilla’s Chilean talent, Bryan Rabello seems like a talented prospect as well.
The only non-Spanish player in Bilbao’s Basque-dominated squad, Aymeric Laporte, could have a more regular role in the side; while Jon Aurtenetxe (who recently secured a loan move to Celta Vigo) is one to watch out for too. Thievy Bifouma spent last season on loan at Las Palmas, and could be in line for a regular part in Espanyol’s campaign. Manu Trigueros played an important role in Villarreal’s promotion winning campaign, and will continue to do so in the La Liga. Malaga’s young talent, Juanmi Jiminez, is an exciting prospect as well and will be hoping Schuster gives him a decent amount of opportunities.
