Villarreal had a fairytale of the season. This club from a small Spanish town won hearts with their run to the Champions League semifinal. For 15 minutes between the halves in the second leg, people believed that the mighty Liverpool will be humbled. Unfortunately for the Yellow Submarine, they were outclassed in the second half. Now, they await a summer of uncertainty, as any smaller team with a season of success behind them. To keep the consistency up, they need to make some moves. Here are the three moves Villarreal must make in the 2022 summer transfer window.
Moves Villarreal need to make in 2022 summer
Keep Arnaut Danjuma
Whenever a smaller team, not part of the European elite, makes a huge run, they get picked off. For instance, when Leicester City won their title a few years back, they slowly lost the crux of their team. A similar thing might happen with Villarreal, although theirs is a team of savvy veterans, rather than players in their prime. One player in his prime and a guy that could be interesting is Arnaut Danjuma, and they need to keep him. He is a Dutch winger that decimated sides in Spain and in Europe, finishing with 16 goals across all competitions. He outperformed Gerard Moreno, Spain's first-choice striker and Villarreal starman.
Now, the offers will come in and Villarreal might be tempted to give him up. However, no amount of money will replace his contribution. Additionally, there is no young talent on the Villarreal roster or one they could buy, that could do what Danjuma has done so well. Additionally, if they were to keep him one more season, Villarreal could attack the Europa League title again, after winning it in 2021, and increase the price of the Dutchman even more. For this summer, their first aim will be to just keep him there and to keep making sure he gets the best chances to showcase his talent.
Sign an experienced center back
Most games on center back for Villarreal this season were played by the pairing of Pau Torres and Raul Albiol. Given the fact that Torres is well-seeked across Europe, even by the likes of Real Madrid, and Albiol is getting on in age and cannot replicate a season like this, they need a replacement in this area of the field. Coach Unai Emery likes to play with two center backs and if he loses just one of these guys, it might be an issue going forward. Thus, one of the biggest needs for this roster is to get a center back in this summer's transfer window.
In terms of the available options, it is very tough to say. We must factor in that guys like Jules Kounde are ungettable for Villarreal, due to their transfer budget size and general reputation. However, a few guys are still realistic options. It could be possible for Villarreal to get Samuel Umtiti from Barcelona and try to revive his career. Additionally, there are some rumblings that Oscar Mingueza, another player from Barcelona, could be available. Mingueza is very young, but he already played 46 league games for Barcelona. He is not amazing, but he can turn out to be a great player and likely would not cost a lot. There are options, it is just up to Villarreal and their board to make the right decisions.
Get a capable keeper
Geronimo Rulli is not a name that you will hear spoken in a good context around Villarreal and their fans. Unfortunately for the Argentinian goalkeeper, he chose the wrong day to have an off performance, as at least two of the three goals Villarreal conceded against Liverpool were directly on him. Rulli is an experienced guy, with 316 games in his career, but similar to Loris Karius and his situation in Liverpool after the 2018 Champions League final, Rulli simply has to leave the club. Now that Rulli should be gone, Villarreal cannot rely on the 32-year-old Sergio Asenjo that featured in just eight games this year. Rather, they should look for a replacement on the transfer market.
A good option, if he is available, is Kepa Arrizabalaga. Of course, he gets a ton of bad reputation, but he is still young, tall, and capable. Villarreal have already revived many careers this year, so they should not stop. If Arrizabalaga is not available for any reason, Cadiz keeper Jeremías Ledesma could be a potential option. He has been great for a Cadiz squad that almost got relegated, and he was especially impressive in both games versus Real Madrid and both games versus Barcelona. If he can keep the form for the entire season, rather than for four games, Ledesma would be a great pickup.
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