LaLiga Santander has countless matches that, year after year, have a large number of teams in tension until the last moment. The races for a place in the UEFA Champions League, the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Europa Conference League, the classic confrontation between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid for the title, and the most dizzying melee: the fight to maintain the category. A battle, which this season takes on even more competitive overtones than usual with seven teams on just five points, and in which, in addition to the importance of the block, a series of footballers are earning their status as great protagonists in the championship roundup albums.
Four clubs remain in contention for the last two places in the coveted Champions League, apart from Madrid and Barcelona (Atlético de Madrid, Real Sociedad, Real Betis and Villarreal CF); a fight that, as seen this weekend, promises strong emotions until the last day. And in which the team led by Diego Pablo Simeone consolidated their options to take third place with their 1-0 win against the Verdiblancos. This result, together with the Groguet victory (2-0) against the San Sebastian team, tightens the dispute for the last place in the fray even more with the three contenders separated by only four points.
Consolidated upon his return to the Cívitas Metropolitano, the Frenchman is not only one of the main finishers in LaLiga Santander (fourth ranked with 28 shots), but also one of the top and most effective gunners with 9 goals and more than 50% of his shots. between the three sticks according to data from Beyond Stats, the advanced statistics project of LaLiga and Microsoft. In addition to keeping his scoring nose intact, despite having seen his position on the pitch fall behind, Griezmann has increased his influence in creating the game. Becoming one of the players in LaLiga Santander who stars in the most high-impact actions (those that have an influence on the shot) and the only one of the 10 top scorers in the championship who exceeds 200 duels (248) and 100 recoveries (109 ).
El Panda has established itself as one of the top scorers in the competition (12 goals at an average of 0.48 per game), but with the particularity of not being one of the strikers with the most shots (only 37). His secret: the precision and orientation of his shots, since, in addition to being one of the players who generates the most well-aimed shots per game (24 in 24 days), 64% of his shots go between the three sticks and 32 % end in a goal, which makes him the footballer with the best ratio among the ten top scorers in the championship.
The options of Villarreal and Real Sociedad inevitably go through the inspiration of two footballers who have faced their respective teams this past day: Take Kubo and José Luis Morales.
The former child prodigy of Japanese football has found maturity in a Reale Arena, which once again dreams of returning to the European elite. Led by Imanol Alguacil, the 21-year-old midfielder is having his best season in Donosti, where he has achieved the necessary stability for a footballer of his age after having accumulated up to four consecutive assignments at RCD Mallorca (two seasons), the Villarreal and Getafe CF.
As a result of the performance of this campaign, Kubo has become one of the main people responsible for Real Sociedad being, according to official LaLiga data, one of the teams with the most high-intensity drives (or shots generated) per game of the championship. The Japanese international is not only one of the most unbalanced youngsters in LaLiga Santander due to his 5 goals (some of them vitally important, such as those scored against Girona FC, Athletic Club or RCD Espanyol de Barcelona) and 3 assists, but he has earned the must-have-for-your-coach tag for his off-the-ball performance and generosity. Not surprisingly, in addition to being his team's top finisher on goal (23), the talented striker is also the sixth txuri urdin footballer who has won the most duels (102), standing out in other defensive facets such as successful tackles with records similar (20) to colleagues a priori more sacrificed as Zubimendi (23) and Brais Méndez (25).
The continued absences due to injury of an offensive reference like Gerard Moreno have forced the Commander to assume the stripes of Villarreal CF in attack. In his first campaign at the La Cerámica stadium, the former Levante UD soccer player is managing to emulate the records of his teammate in front of goal (6 goals both) and is already, together with his teammate Àlex Baena, the top finisher of the team led by Quique Setién (31 shots).
The UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Conference League can be a reward for those who have missed the boat of the first four places. Separated by just four points, Athletic Club, Rayo Vallecano, Osasuna, Celta, Girona and Mallorca aspire to return to the Old Continent next season.
Madrileños and Navarrese will begin to clear up the unknown in the equation in their duel on matchday 29 in Vallecas. While the aspirations of Biscayans and Galicians will go largely through their direct confrontation on matchday 35, in which two of the most pleasant surprises in this championship will face to face: two midfielders with enormous experience and who are uncovering as scorers such as Oihan Sancet and Gabri Veiga.
In addition to his 8 goals that make him the top scorer for the Lions, the Navarrese has already exceeded 100 recoveries (107) and successful duels (104) this season; A whole sample not only of his ability to generate chances, but also of his skills in pressing and the start of the transition in the attack zone.
The great Celtic sensation, for his part, has not only become one of the most desirable pieces on the market thanks to his 9 goals that place him among the top ten scorers in the championship, but he is also showing off an immense capacity for unchecking and driving. In his consolidation in the elite of Spanish football, the man from O Porriño is also showing tremendous efficiency in shooting. Not surprisingly, he is the twelfth footballer who shoots the most and the third goalscorer in the championship with the best percentage in well-aimed shots (25% of his kicks end in goals and 61% of his shots are directed between the three sticks). Undoubtedly, the perfect partner for an active legend at the Vigo club such as Iago Aspas, the fourth top scorer (12) and the sixth highest scorer in the championship this season (27).
More unpredictable if possible is the fight for permanence. In the debut of José Luis Mendilibar on the bench, Sevilla caught air with a valuable away victory in the regional rivalry duel against Cádiz (0-2). The people of Seville have been, together with Valencia, the two great beneficiaries of a day in which they have climbed positions at the expense of Getafe and RCD Espanyol; two clubs that seem to have relegated their options to the inspiration of their two main references in the opposite area: Enes Ünal and the international Joselu Mato.
In his second season in the south of Madrid, the Turkish international has finally confirmed the good feelings he predicted during his time at clubs such as Villarreal, Levante and Real Valladolid. Enes Ünal has become an azulón player to follow (48% of the goals scored by Quique Sánchez Flores bear his signature), since with his 13 goals he is the third highest scorer in the championship, the fifth highest finisher this season in LaLiga Santander (28) and one of the three LaLiga Santander players who have won the most aerial duels (108). His form in 2023 has made him one of the stars of LaLiga Santander. Not surprisingly, he is the top scorer in the championship (9) since the resumption of the competition after the World Cup break together with Karim Benzema.
For the memory of any football lover there is the Chilean from the Ottoman to Espanyol last season. An action that he will try to repeat in Getafe's visit to the RCDE Stadium on matchday 32, where they will face another of the fittest tandems in LaLiga Santander: the one formed by Joselu and Braithwaite.
The position in the table (18th with 33 points) does not reflect the good work of the forward of the parakeets, Espanyol can boast of having one of the most fit scoring duos in LaLiga Santander. Beyond the exceptional performance of a Martin Braithwaite who has once again met the best version of him at the RCDE Stadium (9 goals and 63% in well-aimed shots), Joselu Mato is the great hope of the Catalan team in this final stretch of championship. The 12 goals from the Galician attacker not only place him in the Top-5 of scorers in the competition, but with 365 duels he is by far the footballer who disputes the most balls in his team.
The great records of the parakeet duo would hardly be possible without the presence of the authentic blue and white metronome, Sergi Darder. The Spaniard is the player on his team with the greatest influence on driving, not only in high-impact ones, which lead directly to a shot, but also in those that go beyond the line of rival midfielders, according to data from Mediacoach. A small sample of the inexhaustible talent that all the LaLiga Santander squads treasure.
