David Villa (photos are located below) - forward of the Atletico Madrid football club and the Spanish national team - was born into a miner’s family in the small town of Tuiglia on December 3, 1981. From childhood, he dreamed of becoming a football player. The father supported his son’s love for this sport, so he even trained with him.
The first failures in football
As a successful football player, David Villa could not have taken place. The reason is a fracture of the right thigh, which he received at the age of four. Because of this, he was forced to spend about six months in a cast. However, thanks to the support of his father, he continued to practice and practice punches with a healthy left foot, which helped him a lot in the future.
The player himself has repeatedly admitted that due to disagreements with the coach of the local school, he generally at one time could quit playing football. The fact is that the mentor did not give him much game practice, so Villa spent almost all the time on the bench. However, with the support of the pope, he found the strength to continue the struggle.
The beginning of a professional career
His first attempt to enroll in a school of a professional club also ended in failure. Representatives of Oviedo then said that they did not see enough potential for a player like David Villa. His biography as a football player began with the Mareo club from the town of Langreo, where he moved at the age of 17. A year after that, the guy received an invitation from the Gijon Sporting, whose academy presented the football world with such talents as Luis Enrique, Angulo and Kini.
The 2000/2001 season was David's debut on a professional level. Then he began to get into the starting lineup of the team quite often. This allowed him to distinguish forty goals scored in less than two years, and Sporting himself rose to the top Spanish football division.
Zaragoza
In 2003, the club was in a rather difficult financial situation, so it was forced to sell David. In the summer, he signed a contract with Zaragoza, which established his annual salary of three million euros. The striker did not have problems with adaptation, a striking confirmation of which were 17 goals scored in the “Example”. In the final match of the Spanish National Cup in 2004, David Villa helped his team beat Real Madrid with one of the goals scored. The victory in this tournament subsequently gave him the opportunity to debut at the international level - in the UEFA Cup.
Valencia
Speaking for “Zaragoza”, the football player received recognition throughout the country. Here, local grandees began to pay attention to him. As a result, in 2005, David moved to Valencia, speaking for which, in the first season he was able to score 25 goals in 37 matches. According to this indicator, he took second place in the championship after Cameroonian Samuel Eto'o from Barcelona. In the future, he steadily became the team's top scorer. In the 2008/2009 season, David Villa scored 28 goals, thereby repeating a record that lasted 65 years.
Barcelona
In May 2010, the Catalan “Barcelona” laid out for the transition of this striker the amount of 42 million euros. At the same time, the player’s contract for four years contained a salary of 7 million euros per year. The excitement around this transfer was so high that about 46 thousand spectators attended the presentation ceremony of the new football player. As part of his new team, David made his debut in a match against Sevilla in the Spanish Super Cup. And already in the first match of the Spanish championship against Racing, he managed to score a goal.
During the semifinal game at the club world championships, which took place in December 2011 in Japan, the striker received a left leg injury, which did not allow him to take part in the European championship as part of the national team. The player returned to official performances on August 11, 2012. It should be noted that over the years of performances as part of Barcelona, ​​he managed to become a triumph in all the most prestigious competitions. Be that as it may, in 2013, for 5.1 million euros, he moved to the Atlético club from Madrid, thus starting a new stage in his career.
Spain national team
David Villa has made great strides in playing for the Spanish national team. In particular, he became the champion in the number of goals scored. Gates of his rivals in official tournaments, he hit 56 times. It should be noted that the previous record (44 goals) belonged to the legendary Raul. During his appearances in the national team, he managed to win the European and world champion title.
Personal life
David Villa and his wife Patricia Gonzalez met in childhood. The marriage between them was concluded in 2003. No matter how surprising it was, but the wife of a famous player professionally played football in his youth. The family has three children - two girls and a boy. A curious fact is that the middle daughter is named after the wife of Fernando Torres, who has long been friends with Patricia Gonzalez.