18 Yard Box has a look at the young prodigy who has filled in the massive shoes of Santi Cazorla at Malaga.
He is the hot new property in Spain. Dubbed as the next 'Fabregas' Isco is everyone's want. The 20 year old has taken the Champions League and La Liga by storm and has filled in the missing boots of Santi Cazorla. The Malaga FC player is being sought after by many top clubs.
Here is a look at his life and what the future holds for him.
He is the hot new property in Spain. Dubbed as the next 'Fabregas' Isco is everyone's want. The 20 year old has taken the Champions League and La Liga by storm and has filled in the missing boots of Santi Cazorla. The Malaga FC player is being sought after by many top clubs.
Here is a look at his life and what the future holds for him.
Cesc Fabregas (II) - Isco
Valencia days
Francisco Roman Alarcon, or ‘Isco’ as he is better
known, was born in a Spanish town of Malaga. Hailed as the “New Fabregas”, he
opted to join the more reputable academy of Valencia CF when he was 14. After
some breathtaking outings for the youth academy he was fast-tracked into the
Valencia Mestalla team. He had no problem what so ever playing at such a young
age as he helped the B-team return
to the Third Division by netting
15 goals. He soon caught the eye of first-team coach Unai Emery with some
fantastic performances for the ‘B’ team. As a result, the Spanish coach put his
faith into his hidden gem, handing him his senior debut in the Copa del Rey.
Debuting at such a young age Isco wasn’t satisfied with just making an
appearance; he wanted to make a lasting impression. And he did just that,
scoring twice on his debut in a 4-1 victory.
Soon enough, the reputation of Isco was
gradually rising, and was spotted by numerous clubs. However the club which had
a new ambition and the wealthy Malaga decided to snap up the exciting youngster for
€6 million on a 5 year deal after meeting his release clause. Isco was being
hailed as Malaga’s brightest talent.
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| The Valencia days |
Coming out of the shadows of Santi Cazorla
Remarkably,
since Santi Cazorla's move to Arsenal, Isco has stepped up a level and has been
instrumental as his side has made a brilliant start to the new season in both
the league and Champions League. Isco
started to become Malaga’s key man. Many were impressed when the midfield maestro
was instrumental in helping Malaga overcome Panathinaikos 2-0 on aggregate in
the Champions League Qualifiers.
 |
| The master dribbler |
Moment of magic
The
20-year-old attacking midfielder on Tuesday, 18th September 2012, was one of the
stand-out performers on match day one, scoring two fine goals as Malaga beat
Zenit St Petersburg 3-0. This way the day
when Isco was finally recognized as one of the world’s most promising talents
in football. Coach Pellegrini played Isco as an attacking mid fielder and it only
took three minutes for the Spanish sensation to notch his first Champions
League goal. Picking it up 25 yards from goal, he danced past the defenders
before squeezing a curled effort from a tight angle past the keeper to send the
crowd wild. His second came with first touch with his right foot and second to
lay off the ball, as he unleashed an thunderous strike into the roof of the
net. He celebrated his goal just by looking in heavens for he knew it was just
the beginning of something quite brilliant.
 |
| Isco against Zenit |
International Podium
Isco
appeared with Spain's U17 in 2009
World Cup, scoring three times in the process as Spain finished third. Isco
emerged as one of the best players in Spain’s 2012 Olympic team who were
eliminated in the group stages of the tournament despite having quite a number
of stars. In 2011, he represented his
country in the FIFA U-20 World
Cup netting once in an eventual quarterfinal exit. On 28 February 2012 Isco was
called to the Spanish U23s for a friendly against Egypt, but did not leave the
bench.
 |
| In the Spanish colours |
What the future holds for the Spaniard?
With
the Spanish transfer market falling through the floor, Isco is tipped to be the
next Malaga player to make a move to the Premier League. He has a release
clause with Malaga set at £17 million, which would still be a bargain for the
young man who has so much potential. And after such an amazing start to the new
season he is already being linked to the likes of Arsenal, Manchester United, Liverpool
& Tottenham.
He
is being tipped by some pundits as the long-awaited replacement for veteran
playmaker Paul Scholes at Old Trafford. Brendan Rodgers’ new system is in
desperate need of a shot of creativity, with Steven Gerrard being relied upon
as the nucleus of the team, despite his advancing years. His compatriot and
former Malaga teammate Santi Cazorla signed for Arsenal last summer and the
Gunners are favourites to land the youngster, heralded as ‘the next Fabregas’.
London would appear a more suitable destination. The
combination between Isco and Santi Cazorla was what dragged Malaga into the
top-four last season and with the latter already having joined the Gunners it
would make sense for Arsene Wenger to try and reunite them once more, particularly
given the Frenchman’s penchant for small technical players like Isco in the
past. No matter where the destination though should Isco leave Malaga for
foreign shores in next year it will signal another nail in the coffin for the
competitive balance in Spanish football.
Whether he’ll become the new Fabregas, Scholes, or Gerrard will likely be up to
the player who looks set to have some big decisions to make in January.
Style of Play
Isco is
just another typical Spanish playmaker. Right footed, intelligent and always
giving his full for the team. He, despite being technically sound as a
playmaker, always has an eye for goal. He unlocks defenses with his well-timed
precise passes, knows when to time his run, and more importantly, how to put the
ball in the back of the net. He is great with his first touch and a master at
playing one two’s with fellow team mates just near the edge of the box. A
player who is good with both short passes and has a vision for long cross
through balls to find the players in the box. Likes to show off his amazing
skills and make a mockery of a defense by dribbling past them with his amazing
pace like. A team player who makes the team click and makes the wingers a huge
part of his off the ball generosity by making sublime passes, possibly the
reason he doesn’t assists so much goals. The most amazing attribute of his game
is that he doesn’t goes down easily but when he does he wins a foul. A mixture
of Iniesta, Frank Lampard and Cesc Fabregas is more like what you’d come to
expect from Isco when you ponder his specialities above.
Written By,
Syed Muneeb Iqbal
Muneeb is a Writer for 18 Yard Box
Follow Muneeb on Twitter
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