10 Young La Liga Talents Ready to Break Through in 2015
Only Real Madrid, Barcelona and, more recently, Valencia can afford to invest large sums of money in players in Spain, where the majority of clubs have to rely on youth in order to survive.
The country is known for its ability to create superstars, thanks to some of the best academies in the world.
Barcelona's Masia is the most famous, following the domination of Pep Guardiola's homegrown side in recent years.
While few youngsters progress to the first team at Real Madrid, there are large amounts who go on to have successful careers throughout Europe.
For teams further down the table, finding the next big thing is a financial necessity.
Here are 10 young talents ready to break through in 2015.
10. Joao Cancelo: Full-Back (Valencia)
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Twenty-year-old Valencia right-back Joao Cancelo has only started one match in the league, when he played the full 90 minutes in the 3-0 win over Cordoba.
He also appeared in both legs of the Copa del Rey tie with Rayo Vallecano.
The Portuguese is a real threat in attacking areas, as he likes to take on opponents and overlap out wide.
He's particularly adept at stopping crosses in a defensive sense, although his reactions require work.
Cancelo needs game time to improve during his current loan spell with Los Che.
9. Iker Hernandez: Striker (Real Sociedad)
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With Imanol Agirretxe having been out injured since the end of November, David Moyes has struggled to find an adequate replacement since he arrived at Real Sociedad.
Carlos Vela has been the team's main source of goals, but he's best suited to playing behind a target man.
Alfred Finnbogason has failed to convince, although he did score a brace against Real Oviedo in the Copa del Rey.
Moyes gave young Iker Hernandez his debut against Levante and may utilise him more in 2015.
The forward has played for Spain's under-17, under-18 and under-20 teams.
8. Adrian Marin: Full-Back (Villarreal)
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Villarreal's consistent defensive unit has been one of the reasons behind their success this term.
That hasn't stopped Adrian Marin from making an impact, thanks to the faith shown in him by manager Marcelino.
The 17-year-old left-back made his league debut in September after impressing during the club's pre-season tour of Asia.
He now has four league starts and will certainly be part of Marcelino's plans in the coming 12 months.
Marin likes to dribble down the wings and is a superb tackler, as his recent performance against Cordoba illustrated, via FourFourTwo Stats Zone.
7. Inaki Williams: Striker (Athletic Club)
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Inaki Williams' opening 45 minutes for Athletic Club will largely be remembered for the wrong reasons, as Cordoba recorded their first top-flight victory for 42 years.
However, with the club's strict Basque-only selection policy, the forward will continue to make history as only the second black player in the club's history.
He was born in Bilbao, raised in Pamplona and has parents of Ghanaian origin.
Most importantly, he's a prolific scorer in the youth sides, and given Athletic's self-imposed restrictions, he will surely get more opportunities in the new year.
6. Borja Fernandez: Midfield (Celta Vigo)
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Celta Vigo have lost their last five league matches after suffering just one defeat in their previous 11 games.
They still sit ninth in the table under Eduardo Berizzo, and the coach will be searching for solutions to halt their dramatic slide.
One of which could be to use Vigo-born youngster Borja Fernandez as holding midfielder.
The team haven't lost when the 19-year-old has appeared this season, and regular starter Nemanja Radoja hasn't been overly trustworthy since arriving from Vojvodina in the summer.
5. Eric: Centre-Back (Espanyol)
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Ivorian defender Eric is a physically imposing and aggressive centre-back who's particularly effective in the air.
His reading of the game is extremely good for someone so young, which he illustrates with his tremendous tacking and interception making.
In only his second start for Espanyol, he was man of the match against Levante, via WhoScored.com.
He has a bright future ahead of him and will likely attract the attention of other clubs in the transfer window.
4. Lucas Hernandez: Centre-Back (Atletico Madrid)
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With Atletico's first-choice centre-backs Miranda and Diego Godin continually linked with moves away from the club, per Ben Jefferson of the Sunday Express, there could be an opportunity to advance in that position.
Jose Gimenez has already shown that Diego Simeone will promote from within, and Lucas Hernandez is next in the pecking order.
The 18-year-old Brazilian partnered Gimenez in the recent Copa del Rey tie with L'Hospitalet and will hope for more chances in the competition with compatriot Miranda still injured.
3. Rodrigo de Paul: Midfielder (Valencia)
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Some will argue that Rodrigo de Paul has already made his mark with Valencia's first team, given he's featured in nine league matches this season.
However, as 164 of the 236 minutes he has played in La Liga were in the last two matches of 2014, per WhoScored.com, it proves he's on the verge of a more regular role.
The attacking midfielder is still learning to influence games with the ball, although he's becoming more than adept at reclaiming possession.
2. Alvaro Medran: Midfield (Real Madrid)
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With Luka Modric injured and Sami Khedira a little fragile, Carlo Ancelotti is offering more opportunities to Asier Illarramendi in the league and Alvaro Medran in the cup.
The 20-year-old's passing ability is superb, and he's not frightened to shoot from distance either.
He scored his first goal for the club against Ludogorets in the Champions League—though the shot was heavily deflected.
Real Madrid are a real machine at present, which makes the prospect of breaking into the first team on a regular basis even harder, but there will still be times when they need other options.
1. Adama Traore: Winger (Barcelona)
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Highly rated winger Adama Traore turns 19 at the end of January and will hope to add to the goal he scored in the Copa del Rey thrashing of Huesca.
Adama was given his debut by former manager Gerardo Martino over a year ago and has to remained patient for further chances.
Trying to dislodge the trio of Luis Suarez, Neymar and Lionel Messi is perhaps the hardest job in football, but Barcelona's current transfer ban means they can't add to their squad in 2015.
This means we could see more of Adama and his fellow Masia graduates.
