Most Important Player at Every La Liga Team Next Season
With the La Liga fixtures released on Tuesday morning and the start of the season less than a month away, it's fair to say the countdown to matchday one is underway.
There's been plenty of ins and outs in the transfer market, with some clubs busier than others.
On the club side of things, Almeria, Elche and Villarreal will take the places of Deportivo La Coruna, Mallorca and Real Zaragoza.
But as each club focus on their respective battles—the title race, the battle for Europe and the scrap for survival—which player are they each most likely to lean on?
B/R reveal all in the following slides...
Almeria
1 of 20Who: Aleix Vidal
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 21/08/1989 (age 23)
Position: Forward
After missing out on automatic promotion to Villarreal, Almeria did well to bounce back and win their place in La Liga through the Segunda playoffs. Unfortunately, they didn't do so well when it came to hanging on to their top scorer, Charles, who left for Celta Vigo.
Manager Francisco Rodriguez may look to operate in the loan market but, until then, the Andalusian club will hope the creativity of Aleix Vidal will hold up in La Liga.
Athletic Bilbao
2 of 20Who: Ander Herrera
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 14/08/1989 (age 23)
Position: Central midfield
Athletic Bilbao have made good use of the transfer window, with Real Betis' Benat Etxebarria the pick of their signings—Ernesto Valverde has replaced Marcelo Bielsa as manager too.
However, it will be an old face who could be Athletic's key man this season. Ander Herrera showed signs of maturity in what was a difficult season for the club last time out and, if he continues to orchestrate things from midfield in a similar manner, bigger things will beckon in 2014.
Atletico Madrid
3 of 20Who: David Villa
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 03/12/1981 (age 31)
Position: Forward
Atletico Madrid stole a march on several English sides by sealing the signing of Spain's record goal scorer, David Villa from Barcelona.
He might be 31 now, but Villa remains an accomplished finisher, and Los Rojiblancos will need him to hit the ground running at the Vicente Calderon as they seek to plug the 28-goal gap left by Radamel Falcao's departure to Monaco.
Barcelona
4 of 20Who: Lionel Messi
Nationality: Argentinian
Date of birth: 24/06/187 (age 26)
Position: Forward
Barcelona may have signed Brazilian star Neymar, but it is still their other South American who will remain most important to their success.
Lionel Messi's goal scoring record over the past several seasons doesn't need documenting, and Barca will need him to carry that form on if Carlo Ancelotti succeeds in rejuvenating Real Madrid—the supporting cast of Neymar, Xavi Hernandez and Andres Iniesta should help too.
Celta Vigo
5 of 20Who: Charles Dias de Oliveira
Nationality: Brazilian
Date of birth: 04/04/1984 (age 29)
Position: Striker
Celta Vigo had a Iago Aspas-shaped gap after the striker left for Liverpool, which their new manager, former Barcelona player Luis Enrique, has plugged with a Brazilian called Charles.
The 29-year-old was Almeria's top scorer last season as they won promotion, via the playoffs, back to Spain's Primera Division. The Galician outfit will also be keen to see the best from young right-back Hugo Mallo, who missed a large chunk of the last campaign injured.
Elche
6 of 20Who: Manu del Moral
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 25/02/1984 (age 29)
Position: Forward
Elche have already swooped to bring in Manu del Moral and Miroslav Stevanovic on loan from Sevilla, and the former could prove a particularly valuable asset.
Del Moral was in and out, mainly out, of the Sevilla side last season, but did enjoy a fruitful end to the previous campaign, in which he notched 10 goals. Newly promoted Elche will look to bank on his experience as they bid to avoid an immediate return to La Segunda.
Espanyol
7 of 20Who: Victor Sanchez
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 08/09/1987 (age 25)
Position: Central midfield
La Masia graduate Victor Sanchez enjoyed an impressive first full season with Espanyol, and it should act as a catalyst for him to build on in the upcoming campaign.
A deep-lying midfielder who sits in front of the side's back four, the 25-year-old grew more impressive as Javier Aguirre took Los Pericos from bottom of the table to a respectable 13th-placed finish.
Getafe
8 of 20Who: Pedro Leon
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 24/11/1986 (age 26)
Position: Right wing/midfield
Being one of Madrid's other clubs isn't easy for Getafe, who struggle for crowds and notoriety in the Spanish capital.
The departure of Moroccan Abdel Barrada will hurt them, but luckily they can once again rely on winger Pedro Leon. After spending two seasons on loan from Real Madrid, he's joined the club permanently once again and will be the its creative hub.
Granada
9 of 20Who: Piti
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 26/05/1981 (age 32)
Position: Forward
One of Granada's main problems last season was putting the ball in the back of the net. In a bid to cure their lack of goals, they've brought in two experienced attackers in Riki and Piti from Deportivo La Coruna and Rayo Vallecano respectively.
Piti hit 18 goals in La Liga last time out, almost half of what El Grana scored collectively, and could be the key to them moving up the table in 2013/14.
Levante
10 of 20Who: Vicente Iborra
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 16/01/1988 (age 25)
Position: Central midfield
At 6'3", Vicente Iborra towers over most midfielders, and has been a vital ingredient of a Levante side built around being solid and strong.
The 25-year-old has just a year left on his contract though, so the Valencian side will need to try and tie him down to a new deal soon or risk losing him for free next summer.
Malaga
11 of 20Who: Weligton Oliveira
Nationality: Brazilian
Date of birth: 26/08/1979 (age 33)
Position: Central defender
In the face of so many departures—Isco, Jeremy Toulalan, Joaquin, Martin Demichelis—a lot will be expected of some of Malaga's more experience players in helping the club move on.
Defender Weligton formed a, at times, brilliant partnership with Demichelis last season, and he need to establish, along with goalkeeper Willy Caballero, a solid defense for new manager Bernd Schuster to build upon.
Osasuna
12 of 20Who: Andres Fernandez
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 17/12/1986 (age 26)
Position: Goalkeeper
Osasuna ended last season with the fifth-best defense in La Liga, tied with Malaga—only Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Real Sociedad leaked less.
A large part of that success can be attributed to their goalkeeper, Andres Fernandez, who enjoyed a highly impressive season. It's true the Pamplona outfit will need to find more goals, but hopefully that won't come at the expense of conceding more.
Rayo Vallecano
13 of 20Who: Roberto Trashorras
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 28/02/1981 (age 32)
Position: Central midfield
Roberto Trashorras, alongside Javi Fuego who's departed for Valencia, formed part of an exciting midfield for Paco Jemez's Rayo Vallecano last season.
He may be advancing in years, but the Vallecas club will be happy to still have him in their ranks when the season kicks off next month. An experienced head who uses the ball cleverly, his importance to Rayo can't be underestimated.
Real Betis
14 of 20Who: Joan Verdu
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 05/05/1983 (age 30)
Position: Central/attacking midfield
With Europa League qualification assured, it may have come as a surprise to some that players like Benat Etxebarria and Jose Canas left the club. However, in signing Espanyol's Joan Verdu on a free, Real Betis may have made the understated signing of the summer.
Verdu's use of the ball was vital to Los Pericos turnaround under Javier Aguirre last season, and Pepe Mel will be excited about the opportunity of implementing the 30-year-old in an advanced midfield role for Betis.
Real Madrid
15 of 20Who: Cristiano Ronaldo
Nationality: Portuguese
Date of birth: 05/02/1985 (age 28)
Position: Forward
Real Madrid might have seen Jose Mourinho replaced by Carlo Ancelotti, but on the pitch things are still likely to be spearheaded by Cristiano Ronaldo.
The Portuguese forward has a record of more than a goal every game in his time at the Bernabeu and, despite any further Los Blancos signings, will once again be the man expected to produce the goods at the Bernabeu.
Real Sociedad
16 of 20Who: Antoine Griezmann
Nationality: French
Date of birth: 21/03/1991 (age 22)
Position: Left wing/forward
Many players made a name for themselves in Real Sociedad's impressive season last time out. Defender Inigo Martinez, midfielder Asier Illarramendi and forward Carlos Vela were particularly praiseworthy; so to was their experienced captain, Xabi Prieto.
Another player filled with talent is Antoine Griezmann. The 22-year-old will only have benefited from last season and has the ability to take his game to even higher levels over the coming year—young midfielder Ruben Pardo is another to keep an eye on.
Real Valladolid
17 of 20Who: Patrick Ebert
Nationality: German
Date of birth: 17/03/1987 (age 26)
Position: Winger
After being perceived as not fulfilling his potential at Hertha Berlin, Patrick Ebert was highly impressive in his first season with Real Valladolid.
Unfortunately, he missed large parts of the season through injury, so the club's new manager, Juan Ignacio Martinez, will hope he can keep the 26-year-old fit and in form over the next 10 months.
Sevilla
18 of 20Who: Ivan Rakitic
Nationality: Croatian
Date of birth: 10/03/1988 (age 25)
Position: Midfielder
Sevilla's talented Croatian playmaker, Ivan Rakitic, is often underrated. His continued efficiency and creativity make him one of the best players outside of Real Madrid and Barcelona though.
New manager Unai Emery is overseeing a period of change in Seville at the moment and, even though he's only 25, Rakitic could play a pivotal part in helping players like Geoffrey Kondogbia, Jose Campana, Bryan Rabello and Jairo continue their development.
Valencia
19 of 20Who: Roberto Soldado
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 27/05/1985 (age 28)
Position: Striker
If Roberto Soldado's 24 goals couldn't help Valencia recover from a poor start to qualify for the Champions League last season, you have to wonder where they'd have ended up without them.
The Spanish international is integral to Los Che and, if Miroslav Djukic manages to see off the perceived interest reported by The Mirror, he will once again be the club's main antagonist as they seek a return to La Liga's top four.
Villarreal
20 of 20Who: Bruno Soriano
Nationality: Spanish
Date of birth: 12/06/1984 (age 29)
Position: Central midfield
Villarreal returned to La Liga at the first time of asking after their surprise relegation in 2011/12, and will be keen to avoid a repeat of that experience.
If they are to survive, they'll need to bank on the likes of their captain and defensive midfielder Bruno Soriano. The 29-year-old came through the club's ranks, experiencing both Champions League football and La Segunda, and has been capped by Spain four times.
