He is good-looking and has a loose eyebrow; he is low-key and introverted, and his temperament is soft. He was a potential stock of the Spanish national team, with high hopes, shouldering the great responsibility of reviving the Matadors; he was the core of the midfield on which the Galactic Battleships relied, and he was well-known and favored by many managers. He was a handsome European golden boy who became famous at a young age; he was a young man dressed in glory. He is Real Madrid's current midfielder, Francisco Romain Alarcón Suarez, also known as Isco.
He was also a teenager with unlimited scenery
When he was a child, Isco had a very high level of football talent, and he could be said to be a leader in his peers. Coupled with his love of football, he quickly attracted the attention of La Liga teams. At the age of 14, Isco joined the academy of La Liga powerhouse Valencia and began to undergo very formal training. After professional training, Isco's skills have soared, and although he has had ups and downs on behalf of the Bat Legion second team, this has not hindered his development. Four years later, Isco's performance conquered the Valencia first-team manager, who gave Isco a chance to make his debut. On his debut, Isco surprised everyone with a double. However, such Isco did not conquer Valencia. The following year, Isco moved to Malaga, where He made a splash and won the European Golden Boy at the age of 20. In his two seasons in Málaga, Isco has improved, not only helping the team achieve good results in La Liga, but also leading the team to the quarter-finals of the Champions League. It is worth mentioning that that is, That season, Isco almost overturned the Hornets Dortmund with his teammates in Malaga, and they were only one injury time away from miracles. Due to his eye-catching performance, Isco received an olive branch from La Liga giants Real Madrid in 2013, and then quickly entered the Galaxy. Because the Real Madrid midfielder needed someone to take over at that time, and Isco had the skills and background, he was regarded as the future core of the team to cultivate. In the first few seasons, Isco did deliver good answers, and Real Madrid won the Champions League four times in five years, which also credited him. At the time of the Isco fire, the fans called him "Messi of Spain", which showed his strength and performance. However, he always gave the impression that he could play better. Moreover, Isco's form has been greatly reduced in recent seasons, especially this season. Today, Isco's situation at Real Madrid is more awkward, he is not the main force of the team, but he is not useless, and Zidane is also very troubled in how to use him. The former European golden boy is now like a chicken rib, which is somewhat regrettable.
The Golden Boy of Europe descends on the Bernabeu
data analysis
Isco debuted in the midfield position, mainly the front. Later, he also played in other positions, such as pure midfielder, left forward, left winger, right winger and so on. It can also be seen from this that Isco is a golden oil player in the midfield and can play many positions. Since he plays the front waist and he has performed well in this position, let's take a look at what kind of player Isco counts in this position. The data selected here is the number of goals, assists, and goals produced in the league and European competitions in each season of Isco, and the time span is from the 2011-12 season to the 2019-20 season. As you can see from the chart below, In terms of goals scored, Isco has contributed every season, and there are several seasons where the number of goals has reached 10+, and his goals have reached a valley this season; in terms of assists, Isco has gained in addition to the grain of this season, and the number of assists in each season from 2013-14 to 2017-18 is 10 or close to 10; in terms of the number of goals, Isco's data shows a certain volatility. However, in the middle of 6 seasons (2012-13 to 2017-18), his performance was relatively stable, and the data did not change much. This can be seen: 1, Isco is a midfielder with a relatively good level of goals; 2, Isco is a midfielder with good assist ability; 3, from the 2012-13 season to the 2017-18 season, Isco has performed quite well, and each season can produce more than double-digit goals for the team; 4, from the 2017-18 season, Isco's status has begun to decline, and the decline is quite severe, almost straight.
As a forward player, passing, especially key passes, is an indicator of its strength. When Real Madrid first bought Isco, it was to let him make a difference in the connection and tandem between the midfield and the front, and to help the forward players. As you can see from the chart below, Isco's average number of key passes per game shows a trend of increasing and then decreasing, and then increasing and decreasing; in the 2013-14 season, his average number of passes per game peaked, and in the 2019-20 season, his average number of passes per game reached a valley. This can be seen: 1, Isco used to be a good passer, averaging nearly 2 key passes per game; 2, in the past two seasons, Isco's passing level has gradually declined.
At present, the players who can coincide with Isco's position at Real Madrid are Modric, Kroos, J Ronaldo and Valverde. Let's take a look at isco's performance in passing compared to these teammates. The data selected here is still the average number of key passes per game, but for fair comparison, the respective data is converted into data at the same time, such as 90 minutes this time. As you can see from the chart below, Among these players, Isco's stats are in 4th place, only higher than Valverde, who is just a fledgling young man. From this, Isco's performance this season is really average, able to beat the young players, but not as good as other teammates in the same position. It can also be seen here that at the same time, J Ronaldo's performance is actually the best, even surpassing Kroos.
Status analysis
Let's take a look at Isco's position at Real Madrid, which can be analyzed by his average appearance time after coming to Real Madrid. Isco came to Real Madrid in 2013-14, so the starting point of the time was chosen for the 2013-14 season. As you can see from the chart below, Isco's average playing time is slightly volatile, with the most appearances per game in 2014-15 and the least average appearance time per game in 2018-19. This is what we can see: Isco has not been Real Madrid's absolute main midfielder, but he is a common rotation player, and his opportunities to play every season do not have particularly large fluctuations. In addition, it also shows that the reason for Isco's data decline is not a lack of time.
Through the above analysis, it is not difficult to get that Isco was once a good midfielder, whether he attacked himself or assisted the attack, he showed a certain skill. However, in recent seasons he has completely lost himself, and the performance is really not flattering. Moreover, Real Madrid also gave him the space to play freely, and did not cut his playing time because of his poor performance.
Although Isco's form has declined sharply in the past two seasons, he still has two brushes when he first broke into La Liga, otherwise he would not have been favored by Real Madrid and gained a foothold at the Bernabeu.
The ball is high
Isco has the delicate technique of the traditional Spanish midfielder, and the natural advantage of his height allows him to take the ball with ease, and his control of the ball has reached the point of pure fire. If nothing else, if this is the case alone, Isco is currently definitely in the top five of football's midfielders. The ball is at his feet, like an iron block sucked into a magnet, at his mercy, and it is difficult to snatch the ball from under his feet unless the defender uses a more rude way of breaking the ball. Moreover, Isco's technology has not declined, and even now he can maintain it at a very high level. For example, in this attack, Isco successfully took the ball in the penalty area, and then he attacked with the ball, at this time the defenders rushed up and prepared to surround it, but in the face of the bag Isco was not in a hurry, he flashed left and right, and finally found a shooting opportunity. Throughout the process, the ball stuck to Isco's feet like a rubber candy. I have to say that the title of "Spanish Messi" is by no means a waste.
Want to grab the ball? No way!
Breakthrough masters
Speaking of Isco's breakthrough, it also made countless fans clap their hands and praise. Isco's breakthrough is very interesting, he can break through one-on-one, make defenders cry bitterly, scratch their ears and scratch their cheeks; he can break through one-on-many and let everyone else be the background board for his attack. Isco's breakthrough does not focus on speed, but pays great attention to the change of rhythm, he can find defensive loopholes in an instant, and he can already think of many of the next moves before the previous action is made, and he can pass the defensive player in the same step, in the rush stop. If there is a defensive player who is more iron-headed and insists on defending him alone, then the defender is only waiting to be teased. For example, in this attack, Isco began to push forward after receiving the ball near the middle circle, he first used his heel to reverse the ball to directly pass two defenders when he received the ball; then evaded the defense and passed two defenders in the process of advancing; then he took the ball to the front of the box and used a fake action to shake off a defender again; finally he burst into the box to face the pinch and successfully knocked out two defenders... Although Isco failed to shoot, this time he single-handedly broke into the box from midfield and played with seven defenders. Is this Isco? Yes, that's Isco.
A heavenly breakthrough
Midfielder all-rounder
Isco has always been positioned as a midfielder, but with his ability he can play a lot of positions. As long as the team needs it, he can become a universal patch in the midfield, and he can play it. For example, this season, under Zidane, Isco has played a total of 6 positions, namely left midfielder (starting 1 game), pure midfielder (starting 2 games), right winger (starting 5 games), left winger (starting 5 games), forward (starting 3 games), left forward (starting 1 game). Isco's midfield all-rounder traits allow the manager to use a lot of room for expansion, which is one of the reasons why the current downturn of Isco can stay at Real Madrid.
Isco can play multiple positions in the midfield
Isco became famous very early, and now he is only 28 years old, and it is reasonable to say that his career is at the top or is heading to the top, but he lost himself when he was rich and powerful, why?
It doesn't fit in with the team style
The style of Isco and Real Madrid are not in line, which is a cliché. Isco has very delicate technique, can play pass-control football, he can carry the ball, he can break through, he can pass the ball. But he also has his own weaknesses, that is, it is easy to fall into the magic barrier of sticky balls, and the ball is slow, slow, and the long pass is unstable. In recent years, the attacking method advocated by Real Madrid is to play a whirlwind, no matter what opponent they face, the team will play a quick counterattack at the first opportunity, and strive to seize the opportunity with a thunderous momentum. In such a situation, Isco's strengths cannot be fully released, and the shortcomings are infinitely magnified, and he and Real Madrid have never been able to fully integrate.
Stylistic incompatibility is fatal
And the forward players are holding each other back
During his time at Real Madrid, Isco also had a good time, with impressive goals and assists. However, at that time, Real Madrid had Ronaldo in the front, and Bale and Benzema were much more lethal than they are now. With the BBC in the front, especially Ronaldo in the front, he can provide ample passing space for midfielders. In many cases, Isco will find C Luo on the left for the first time after carrying the ball in midfield, as long as Isco gets the pass and C Ronaldo can successfully receive the ball, then his task is basically completed. However, since the departure of Cristiano Ronaldo, Real Madrid's frontcourt threat has dropped by a notch, and the frontcourt players cannot provide reverse support to the midfielders, and Isco's ability cannot be fully exerted. Once there is a problem in the midfield, then Real Madrid's already not too sharp forward knives will become blunter. The midfielder and the striker are holding each other back, and neither side can play efficiently.
Short pass to find C Ronaldo
Long pass to find C Ronaldo
There is no absolute trust from the manager
Whether it's Ancelotti or Benitez, or Lopetegui and Solari, they all had great expectations of Isco at the beginning, and so did Zidane. However, Isco's play is really unpredictable, he can play quite well, he can also play badly, and it is difficult for him to continue to be in excellent form, this good game, bad game back and forth, gradually let the team manager lose patience and trust. Once the manager loses patience and trust, then it is difficult for him to get enough playing time, and without enough playing time, he is brave and difficult to prevent him from falling into the deep pit of the downturn. Today, Zidane is also hesitant to use Isco, he needs Isco, but he can't fully shoulder the responsibility.
When Real Madrid bought Isco with thousands of dollars, Isco also refused the invitation of many giants, only favoring the Galactico. I thought the combination of the two was seamless, but looking back and looking closer, I found that the combination of the two may be a beautiful mistake. With Isco's ability, he can be promoted to a higher position, even if he can't become one of the world's top midfielders, but at least he can be proud of one side and achieve hegemony (for personal honors, after all, winning the Champions League in five years and four years at Real Madrid has made history). However, he has always been a good midfielder at best, not a top midfielder, and cannot compete with players such as De Bruyne and Kroos. If he had gone to a team that was perfect for his style of playing, maybe his ceiling would have been higher.
Isco