Barcelona transfer news : Barcelona signs David Villa Ahead Of La Liga Season
Newly-signed Barcelona striker David Villa is now preparing for Spain’s semi final match against Germany. So far, everything has been spot-on for David Villa. The transfer is looking to be one of the best that Barca has come up with, coughing up roughly €40 million for the services of the striker who used to suit up for Valencia.
Villa has been in fine form for his national team, scoring all but one of Spain's goals in the run-up to the semi final. Spain manager Vicente del Bosque has shown so much faith in the Barcelona striker, that he often uses villa for the entire 90 minutes, while the struggling Fernando Torres is usually replaced at the front.
After Spain’s shocking loss to Switzerland, Villa shifted gears and scored two goals against Honduras. He could have turned it into a hat-trick if it not for the penalty miss that saw the ball just wide off the post. Villa helped his national team book a spot in the Round of 16 after scoring a spectacular long-range goal against Chile.
When Spain met fellow-Iberians Portugal, Villa proved to be the deciding factor, as Villa put the ball into the back of the Portuguese net after a lucky rebound.
In the quarterfinals, Spain went up against Paraguay, with Villa having the lone goal of the match. After a strike from Pedro hit the post, Villa was in the right place at the right time once again, scoring a goal off the rebound.
And now, many expect the Barca striker to once again carry Spain on his shoulders against Germany. He will have to find a way to pierce the solid German defense and counter the attack led by Miroslav Klose, Lukas Podolski, Mesut Ozil, and the rest of Germany’s young guns.
As of today, Villa stands as one of the few Barca representatives still in the World Cup, after the likes of Lionel Messi, Dani Alves, Rafael Marquez, Gabriel Milito, and Thierry Henry have exited the World Cup.
Whatever happens in the semi final match between Spain and Germany, Villa has shown enough skill in the World Cup for his stock to rise even more while playing for the Catalan giants.
When La Liga starts anew, expect Villa to start as the squad’s center forward in their the three-pronged attack. With Villa in the center, Lionel Messi and Pedro Rodriguez would even be more dangerous on the left and right side.
The Barcelona attacking machine will continue to operate as efficiently and dangerously as ever sans Samuel Eto'o, who is now a striker for Italian Serie A club Internazionale.
However, observers feel that the arrival of Villa will put Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s role in danger. Despite having a contract with Barcelona until 2014, Zlatan has suffered a bit of a slump last season.
The Barca management was quick to address the situation, saying that Zlatan will not lose his place in the starting XI, seeing that Villa can play well on the wings.
It sure is going to be one h**l of a season in La Liga, especially when the rivalry between Barcelona and Madrid erupts once again. In Villa, Barca has finally found the man to replace Eto'o. It will be interesting to show he will pair up with Messi and Pedro.
The link-up will be very important, especially since Barcelona has just replaced its previous triumvirate of attackers in Messi, Henry, and Eto'o, which has been the most successful in Spanish league history, scoring 72 goals and surpassing the 66 goals of Real Madrid's Ferenc Puskas, Alfredo di Stefano, and Luis del Sol of the 1960–61 season.
And so to Barca, we say, Viva Villa!
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