The tactical philosophy of Spanish football requires strong centre-forwards, and today in Spanish football, the most talked about centre-forwards include Morata, Herard Moreno, Raul de Tomas and others. In the "distant memory" of the Spanish national team, there were three same impressive centers born in 1985: Fernando Llorente, Soldado and Negredo, how are these three former strikers doing now?
Fernando Llorente
Born on 26 February 1985, Fernando Llorente is one of the stars trained by the Bilbao Academy, and as a rare high school striker in Spain, F. Llorente's tactical value is highly valued, he is not only able to take advantage of his height advantage in air combat, but also a team player who is good at ball possession and strategy.
During his career, Llorente did not leave his mark on homegrown giants such as Real Madrid, Barca or Atletico like many Spanish stars, but transferred to Juventus in Serie A after the expiry of his contract with Bilbao in 2013. Since then, Llorente has played for Sevilla, Swansea, Tottenham Hotspur, Napoli and many other clubs. In January, Llorente joined Udinese without a visa, became a free agent again in the summer, and in October, Llorente signed with La Liga club Eibar to continue to play his heat, making seven appearances for Eibar this season.
Although Llorente was not a major player during his time with the national team, he was still a member of the 2010 and 2021 Spain world cups and European Championships, and Llorente's appearance is considered an important tactical change for the Spanish team. Llorente also won three Serie A titles while at Juventus and the Europa League while at Sevilla.
Roberto Soldado
Born in May 1985, The well-rounded centre-forward debuted in the Real Madrid academy and was one of the most highly regarded players in the Real Madrid squad. In the 2006–07 season, Saldado was loaned to Osassuna and officially transferred to Getafe before the start of the 2008–09 season.
Soldado's career-best goal-scoring stats were created during his time at Valencia in 2012-13, when he scored 30 goals in 46 appearances and ended the season when Tottenham Hotspur bought Soldado for €30 million. However, Soldado did not fare well in england, and he has since played for Villarreal, Fenerbahce and Granada.
While at Granada, Soldado showed good competitive form, and at the end of last season, Soldado signed Levante until 2023. Despite being 36 years old, Saldado remains one of Levante's key options in the forward line, scoring twice in Levante's 8-0 Copa del Rey win over the Meria Hurricanes this month.
Alvaro Negredo
Also in the Copa del Rey game earlier this month, Negredo scored a hat-trick in the game against Fortuna in Cadiz and Fortuna and gave 2 assists, and the former "beast" sword is not old.
Born in August 1985, Negredo debuted in the Youth Academy of Vallecano and also spent a brief stop at the Real Madrid Academy, but after joining Almería in 2007, Negredo quickly became popular, was recycled by Real Madrid and was sold to Sevilla.
His performance in Sevilla Negredo has not disappointed, he has scored 55 goals in his three seasons with Sevilla, and the transfer fee when he joined Manchester City in 2013 has reached 25 million euros. However, like Soldado, Negredo's trip to England did not take him to the next level, he was loaned to Valencia in his second season with Manchester City, and then he played for Middlesbrough, Besiktas and Dubai, and in August 2020, the then 35-year-old Negredo returned from Qatar to sign for Cadiz.
Negredo's style of play is different from many Spanish strikers, he is physically strong, has excellent confrontation skills, left-footed shots are accurate and powerful, last season Cádiz against Barca and Atletico Madrid, Negredo has a very good performance, the once famous scorer still maintains competitiveness in the top flight.
In the golden age of his career, Negredo has won a lot of honors, in 2012 Spain won the European Championship again, Negredo is one of the members of the team, during his time at Manchester City and Sevilla, Negredo also won the Premier League and the Spanish Copa del Rey, the player's stable performance at the end of his career is bound to add a different kind of brilliance to his career.
(Santiago-Wang)