Mic'd Up: Villa talks Barcelona, the Spanish national team and why Barcelona's Yamal will win a Ballon d'Or
David Villa knows the pressure of the Champions League. After all, he has played in the famed tournament for four different Spanish clubs. He has won it once, and experienced the agony, too, of losing a final. His one takeaway? Any team, from anywhere, must believe at the start of the season.
"We are in the beginning of the season. To win the Champions League, you need to play very well all year, because the final is in six, seven months," the former Spain striker tells GOAL. "All the teams have possibilities."
And he might just be right. Last year's winners PSG finished towards the bottom of the newly revamped group phase. Liverpool, who topped the group, were bounced before the quarterfinals. This is a really hard thing to win. And Villa doesn't like predictions. After all, Inter making a run to the final surprised everyone.
"You never know in football. Many people expected that the final would be Barcelona vs PSG. But Inter Milan did very well in their run and took out Barcelona," he says.
The Spain legend, who has 15 major trophies to his name, is now a football analyst, working for DAZN and bringing his expertise to the European content-sphere. And even if predictions aren't his favorite, Villa certainly has some opinions on his beloved Barcelona and the Spanish national team.
He broke them all down in the latest edition of Mic'd Up, a recurring feature in which GOAL taps into the perspective of broadcasters, analysts, and other pundits on the state of soccer in the U.S. and abroad.
Getty Images SportON BARCELONA
GOAL: First of all, if PSG and Barcelona had played in the final last year – as many expected – who would have won?
VILLA: You never know in football. Many people expected that the final would be Barcelona vs PSG. But Inter Milan did very well in their run and took out Barcelona. I thought PSG were very much better in the final. But you never know what could have happened if Barcelona were there.
AdvertisementGetty Images SportON LAMINE YAMAL AND THE BALLON D'OR
GOAL: Talk to me about Lamine Yamal. How good is he?
VILLA: He's really good. All you have to do is see, just watch him in real life or on TV, you know, he's an amazing player. He's a talent. He has everything. He's fast, he's technical. He assists very well. He scores very well. He's young. He's only 18, but he's one of the best players in the world right now, at just 18 years old. So we will enjoy with him a lot, the supporters of Barcelona and the supporters of football, because he's young, and he has an amazing career ahead.
GOAL: Should he have won the Ballon d'Or?
VILLA: Ousmane Dembele played very well. Other players did very well. PSG won the Champions League. They decided that Dembele is the winner this year, and we will see next year. I am sure that if Yamal continues with these skills and with his football, he will win pretty soon. The people chose Dembele. That's OK for me.
Getty Images SportON ENGLISH TEAMS IN THE CHAMPIONS LEAGUE
GOAL: Who's the best Premier League team in the Champions League, in your opinion? Who's most likely to win?
VILLA: We are in the beginning of the season. To win the Champions League, you need to play very well all year, because the final is in six, seven months. Right now, I think Liverpool is playing very well. They suffered a lot with Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, but they are playing very well in the Premier League. Manchester City is always in the fight with Pep Guardiola, and the players that they have in their roster. Arsenal is playing well, with Mikel Arteta, and can be a possibility. All the teams in the Champions League have possibilities.
Getty ImagesON XABI ALONSO AND REAL MADRID
GOAL: Switching gears to La Liga, do you think Xabi Alonso was the right man for Real Madrid?
VILLA: We will see. I think he was an amazing player. He is a great coach. Not because he's my friend, but because he showed to everybody that he coaches very well. But it's just the beginning of the season. The other day it was a tough game for Madrid, because Atletico Madrid played very well. But it's the beginning of the season. We will see, but I am sure that he will be a great coach.
