Abraham P. Romero Madrid
Madrid
Updated Tuesday, January 30, 2024-07:53
Spanish football
has
changed. It's time to assume it. Beyond the victories or defeats that our clubs achieve in Europe, the comparison with the
audiences
of other seasons or the difference in the
money spent
on transfers in other leagues, the reality is that football, the pure game that is seen every week , it is different from what we were used to in another era.
LaLiga
clubs
easily surpass the rest of the continent's teams in the number of
fouls committed per match
and the footballers of our League are the first on the list of most 'hunted' each day.
The data explains the reality of the Spanish championship. According to the statistics platform
WhoScored
, LaLiga clubs make
13.2 fouls per game
. The French league, 12.55; Italian Serie A, 12; the German Bundesliga 11.5 and the English Premier 11.2. Now think about fame. Wasn't the Premier League, supposedly, the most intense and vertical championship? Not anymore.
"
I attribute it to the style of play ," Óscar Díaz, an analyst for
Rayo Vallecano
, explains to this newspaper
, the third team in the League that commits the most fouls (16.1) and the one that suffers the most (14.2) each weekend. . «I would say there are three important things to keep in mind. On the one hand, our way of pressing and attacking vertically, in which more duels are generated. The more duels between footballers, the more fouls. On the other hand, our field, in which the dimensions are somewhat smaller and more duels are also generated. And finally, for the
profile of our players
. For example, Isi, Trejo... They hold the ball with their backs to them, they play a lot under pressure in complicated situations... Other teams may defend further back and with a lower pace of play. We don't," analyzes Díaz.
Whether due to the style of play or not, Rayo is one of the five teams that commits the most fouls per game in Spain... And in Europe. Because on the old continent
the Top-5 clubs that commit the most infractions are Spanish
:
Getafe
(16.8),
Real Sociedad
(16.5),
Rayo, Cádiz
(16) and
Mallorca
(15.5). Then
Toulouse
,
Monaco
and
Mainz
appear before Osasuna (14) and Athletic Club (14). That is, 7 of the Top-10 are from LaLiga.
«For Real Sociedad, for example, I think the same thing happens to us. He makes a lot of fouls and they also make mistakes, but because it is a team that seeks duels a lot and has that profile of players, like Mikel Merino, and then many skilled footballers, like
Kubo
," Díaz summarizes.
The Japanese is the 10th player who suffers the most fouls in the championship on a list led by
Jude Bellingham
. 3.1 times per match they stop the Englishman from Madrid, who a few days ago protested to
Hernández Maeso
not to whistle any more against Almería. The Briton has inherited
Vinicius
's position
, the most sought after last season in LaLiga and in Europe. The Brazilian is now sixth in the tournament behind his teammate,
Isco, Hugo Duro, Bamba and Ocampos
. "They play in a three-quarter zone, they are skilled... It is the same case with Isi," recalls Díaz. The Rayo midfielder receives 1.9 in each appointment.
The load of fouls in the Spanish championship compared to the rest of the European tournaments also has an influence on the
refereeing work
. The national referees are the most card holders in Europe:
1,060 yellow cards
this season, compared to 960 in the Premier, for example. Getafe and Cádiz are the clubs on the continent with the most yellow cards and
Soto Grado
, with 82 yellow cards, has received the most.
All this data is not new, but the trend is clear. LaLiga has stopped being the one that enjoys the most goals to lead the classification in fouls and cards. Six years ago, none scored more than the Spanish team (2.90), but now the one that rules the scoring issue is the Bundesliga. «
If these matches are a product of the League, it is a shame
», criticized Xavi Hernández during the first months of the season. "They forget that repetition is a card," Ancelotti declared at the time. Madrid is the one with the fewest fouls, followed by Atlético and Barça. Something logical considering that they are one of the teams that have the most possession of the ball in all of Europe.