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More than a decade ago, the famous columnist Simon Cooper wrote in his book The Economics of Football: "There is no worse time to buy a player than if this person has just performed well in a major international competition." While many buyers are watching the player with great anticipation, the reality is that he is exhausted from playing in international competitions and will probably be obsessed with his achievements for a long time. ”
Looking back at the rapidly changing transfer market, Simon Cooper's summary may seem reasonable, but the sudden outburst of the two top four players after the World Cup in Qatar confirms some unusual exceptions. The attack in Qatar late last year was like a mysterious journey of "enlightenment", not only did they not indulge in it, but they also restarted the five major European leagues with full firepower. Their name, yes
Eintracht Frankfurt's French centre-forward Boise Boyny
, and Ennesri, a Moroccan who plays for Sevilla.
On 23 April, Sevilla FC beat Villarreal 2-1 at home to claim their fourth win in their last six league matches. The Moroccan striker came off the bench and scored a header in the fourth minute of injury time, further keeping his team away from the relegation zone. In the following round, Sevilla beat Bilbao 1-0. From a bottom-to-bottom finish in La Liga three months ago to 11th and the last four of the Europa League today, Sevilla FC have bottomed out strongly after the World Cup in Qatar. During this period, Ennesri, who had just scored twice against Manchester United, was undoubtedly the first contributor.
In his last 13 La Liga games, Ennesri has scored eight goals, equalling his previous 48 appearances. In addition, after the World Cup in Qatar, he scored 15 goals in all competitions, and looking at the entire La Liga, only Benzema has more than him.
Compared to five goals in 29 games in all competitions last season, Ennesri has scored 17 goals in 41 games this season, the second-highest number of goals scored in a single season in his career. For him, the counterattack of the Qatar World Cup is like a spiritual journey, which shocked the world and won glory for the country, but also regained his "flow" of scoring 18 goals in 38 games in La Liga and 24 goals in 52 games in all competitions two years ago.
The in-form Ennesri is rumoured to have lifted the appetite of a number of Premier League clubs, and given the popularity of the centre in the transfer window in recent years, it is not imaginary for the Moroccan to torture the Premier League centre-back. In the Athletic Net report, West Ham made an offer of 30 million euros for Ennesri a year ago, but Sevilla refused. At the beginning of this year, the "Hammer Gang" became interested in the former again, and the willingness to strengthen the forward line has not diminished. Perhaps this summer, West Ham, struggling with goalscoring efficiency (just 34 in 32 games this season), will have to go on the Sevilla centre again.
Ennesri, who debuted in the top five leagues in 2016, has been playing in La Liga and has belonged to teams such as Malaga, Leganes and Sevilla. In the 2018-19 season, he scored 11 goals in 34 appearances for Leganes, scoring a double-double for the first time in a single season of his career. In January 2020, he joined Sevilla FC for 20 million euros and has been working as a regular ever since.
Given that Sevilla FC have basically completed La Liga relegation tasks, they can prepare for the Europa League semi-final with Juventus without distraction. In the previous 32 knockout rounds of the Europa League, Sevilla FC have won 30 times, with a 93.75% promotion rate – only to lose the Europa League side against Slavia Prague in 2019 and West Ham last year.
As the team's top scorer this season (and the only player in the team to score a double-double), Ennesri naturally has a heavy responsibility, and his fortune and form will be the key to Sevilla's ability to approach the trophy. Looking back at the Europa League triumph three years ago, Ennesri scored just two goals in six appearances, and the last three key games were scoreless, and he had to go through the final. But in this season, the Moroccan in good condition has the opportunity to rise from supporting role to protagonist, and the familiar and shining light emitted by the Europa League is not far away.
The author of this article: Chen Dingrui
The image comes from the Internet