It’s not Jozy Altidore’s first goal in a Villarreal uniform:

But his goal yesterday against Besiktas led to a Villarreal win (forward to 5:05):

And it asks Sr. Roig and Juan Carlos Garrido a very important question: what is Jozy’s future with Villarreal CF? El Periódico Mediterráneo rightfully highlighted Jefferson Montero, but the club site noted that Jozy was “very active in the game’s final minutes.” The game swung when Jozy came on for David Fuster in the 55th minute.

The contrasts are clear: Marco Ruben and David Fuster lack his strength, and Nilmar cannot match his pace. Jozy would fill Llorente’s void, though Rossi will generally feature at center forward. But should Villarreal stunt his long-term development with spotty playing time at age 20? Not to mention his transfer value after South Africa.

Altidore looks to be motivated, fit, and battle-tested after the EPL and World Cup. His technical ability and attitude must improve, but with his raw talent, the sky’s the limit. Another loan deal makes sense, waiting for Rossi or Nilmar to leave next summer, but an option to buy may push him out the door for good. Montero at winger means that David Fuster is Jozy’s competition for the fourth striker position. So I’m hoping for a Fuster loan deal (Levante? Hércules?) or for Garrido to carry 5 forwards.

If Jozy stays, he will begin as a change of pace substitute. However, if he cannot crack this season’s roster, both sides may wish to part. The club should recoup most (if not all) of his $10 million transfer fee, and Altidore needs to grow before Brazil 2014. Logic says that he should stay, but money and squad size disagree. What do you think?

Winners from yesterday:

• Jozy Altidore. Has a role as a true center forward. Poacher’s goal.
• Rubén Cani. A goal, an assist, and lots of fouls received. Doing his job.
• Jefferson Montero. Explosive. Brilliant assist, laying Cani’s volley on a platter.

Losers:

• David Fuster. Creates? Yes. Finishes? No. Has a role on the team? Maybe.
• Carlos Marchena. 10% out of form. Just a post-South Africa layoff? I think so.
• Nilmar. Also a bit off. May need Rossi to be comfortable.

UPDATE 2: Villarreal has won the XI Trofeo de la Cerámica 6-5 on penalties.

UPDATE: Jozy’s goal to tie the match at 2.

Much-beloved striker Nihat Kahveci returns to El Madrigal today as Villarreal takes on Besiktas in the XI Trofeo de la Cerámica. Besiktas will bring a number of big names in addition to Nihat, such as manager Bernd Schuster, midfielder Guti, and forward Ricardo Quaresma.

Bringing Nihat back will be a special day for everyone. He was a fan favorite at the club and left on amicable terms. He played three years at Villarreal, with the 2007-2008 term being his best. That year, in 34 appearances, he scored 18 goals. Injuries slowed him down the following year, and he was transferred back to his original club Besiktas prior to the 2009-2010 season. He regained a bit of his form back in Turkey, scoring three goals in 18 appearances.

Jozy Altidore was briefly linked up with Besiktas earlier this summer, and Turkey still seems a likely destination. He was assigned #12 this week, but the quality of his performance and the impression he leaves, if he enters the match, could be suggestive of whether or not he ends up heading to Turkey before the end of the month, whether with Besiktas or another team.

Something you should know before the match starts: Besiktas Jimnastik Kulübü apparently means Besiktas Gymnastic Club in Turkish. Please correct me if I am wrong on that – it is Wikipedia-sourced. I know Besiktas is a great team, but there is something less than intimidating about a club that was formed for purposes of gymnastics….

Villarreal will face FC Dnepr Mogilev of Belarus in the Europa League play-off.

Mogilev finished 3rd in the Belorussian league, earning a spot in the 1st qualifying round. To reach the play-off, they have defeated KF Laci of Albania, Stabaek Fotball of Norway (on away goals), and FC Banik Ostrava of the Czech Republic. Stabaek was in last season’s Champions League qualifiers and lost to Valencia at this stage of the Europa League, so making it this far is a big achievement for Mogilev.

Villarreal will be without its Spanish internationals this week; otherwise the squad should be at full strength (barring injury). The first leg will be at El Madrigal, so hopefully the team can take a comfortable advantage to the Spartak Stadion. The return leg is the week of the La Liga opener, so it would be nice to rest some key players.

At this stage last season, Villarreal defeated NAC Breda 9-2 on aggregate. Will it be the same story this time around?

First off, VillarrealUSA is proud to join the NewsNow network. This partnership will give our readers access to Villarreal news in English from across the Web.

To our new readers: welcome! We hope to keep you entertained.

Lots of news from the Ciudad Deportiva:

• For the first time ever, Villarreal CF has 4 players in a Spanish national team squad. That’s tied with Real Madrid. Incredible.
• Marchena and Capdevila were locks, having won the World Cup, and Cazorla was due. But Bruno Soriano, really?
• El Periódico Mediterráneo had hoped for 5, including Senna and Diego López. Sadly, their time may be done, though Diego is more reliable than Pepe Reina.
• Speaking of Bruno, he has signed for an additional 4 years. His contract now runs out in 2016, or when Barcelona pays his rescission clause.
• The B team has made its “last signing” of the offseason: wingback Jaume Costa, on loan from Valencia.
• And from the “Where are they Now?” files: Ernesto Valverde is being considered for manager of the Japanese national team.

An update on our Europa League opponent to come on Friday.

The club appears to come into the season with a similar goalkeeping lineup as it had last year, with Diego López leading the group, to be backed up by Xavi Oliva. This is not definitively settled, however, with newly-promoted Juan Carlos waiting in the wings, ready to be playing top-tier football. It appears that the club has a decision to make regarding the backup. One of them, Oliva or Juan Carlos, will have to be loaned out.

Diego López Rodríguez

Unless there is a dramatic change, Diego López will be the starting keeper for Villarreal during the 2010-2011 season. For the past two years, there have been constant rumors that he is heading off to one club or another, usually in the Premiere League, but these have not come to fruition, and he really appears to be happy at the club.

Overall, Lopez had a below-average year by his standards. In his 38 La Liga starts last season, Lopez gave up 57 goals, a 1.5 Goals Against Average per match. That is not a terrible stat, but it isn’t great either. Compared to the rest of the league, only six other teams gave up more goals over the course of the season. Obviously, a significant blame for the number of goals goes to Villarreal’s porous back line; in the end, though, the number of goals allowed eventually comes to rest at the keeper’s feet. He did make 112 saves, and had a save percentage of .66. The numbers are not the only sign of a down year. Many people might also look at the comparative lack of interest in his services from other clubs over the summer, as well as the snub from Vicente del Bosque as evidence of his off year.

No matter if your opinion is that he had a terrible year or a great year, you have to believe that he can play much better than that, as he did the year before. In 2008-2009, he had a 1.42 GAA, and made 126 saves out of 180 shots, for a save percentage of 70%.

Lopez cannot rest on his laurels and feel assured that the job is his for the entire season. Last year, he had only nominal competition for the starting position from Xavi Oliva, following the backup’s signing from Castellon. While it is certain Lopez will be the starter (again assuming no sale), he will have newcomer Juan Carlos hot on his heels, itching for his own starting role. While Xavi Oliva may have been perfectly comfortable signing on to sit the bench, not many 23-year-olds are going to feel content playing the backup role.

One thing that you have to admit – up year or down, Diego Lopez has been the mark of reliability in goal for the Yellow Submarine. Over the past two years, he has played every minute of every Liga match. Last year he did leave a Europa League match due to injury, but recovered before the next Liga match rolled around..

Juan Carlos Sánchez Martínez

The club has not yet determined – at least publicly – who will be Lopez’ backup, but my money is on the young Juan Carlos. Juan Carlos just turned 23 on the 27th of July, and is in all likelihood the future in goal for Villarreal. He has played for Villarreal’s youth ranks since the 2003-2004 season, and now finds himself a member of the first team.

While still listed officially as the third-choice keeper, Juan Carlos is clearly the future of the club, and I cannot see Juan Carlos Garrido letting him rot away on the bench or sent off to another team. Plus, Juan Carlos knows how to win. In 2006-2007, he helped carry the Villarreal B team to promotion from the Tercera to the Segunda B. The very next year, he lead the team to promotion to Segunda A, making Villarreal C.F. the only club in Spain with teams in the first two divisions. And last year he didn’t slow down, helping the team to a 7th place finish, and keeping a GAA of only 1.33.

This isn’t the first time Juan Carlos has suited up with the A team. On a few occasions he has found himself on the Villarreal bench when the keeping situation was especially thin. One match, during the 2007-2008 season, the first team unexpectedly required his services following Diego Lopez’ expulsion in a match against Almeria. He was with the team because of an injury at the time to Sebastian Viera. Although he couldn’t stop the penalty that he had to face the first minute on the pitch, he did manage to keep Almeria scoreless for the rest of the match.

Javier “Xavi” Oliva González

Xavi Oliva was brought over from Castellon last summer, and has a contract that runs through the end of the 2010-2011 season. He didn’t see much action with Villarreal following his arrival from the provincial capital, but generally played at an acceptable level for a backup.

Oliva’s signing with Villarreal was his first opportunity to play for a Primera Division squad. While he didn’t make it into any Liga matches this season, he did manage an appearance against Lazio in a Europa League match, and started a few matches in the Copa del Rey.

Oliva is not exactly past his prime – he’s only 34 – but with Juan Carlos available, he is inevitably on the way out of the Submarine’s plans. Garrido knows Juan Carlos well from the years of coaching him with Villarreal B, and I would not be surprised to see Oliva loaned out to a Segunda A club before the start of the season.

There are still a number of questions remaining for the club. Who should be the backup? Should the club dedicate the backup to a particular competition – such as the Copa? Or should Diego Lopez be first choice throughout all competitions?

These questions should be solved within the next month. My money is on Juan Carlos being the backup. We’ll see.

Welcome to the club, Carlos Marchena. The 31-year-old central defender has signed for 3 years from our local rivals Valencia CF, with whom he spent the past decade. Fabricio Fuentes left in January, while Diego Godín and Gonzalo Rodríguez are on their way out, so Marchena is a sorely-needed stabilizing force on our back line.

I like this signing. Let’s look at the arguments for and against it. What do you think?

Cons:

• Paying a transfer fee for a 31-year-old. Maybe illogical, but €2 million is nothing these days, even for a one-year buyout. And we’ve banked nearly €10 million from salary savings and transfer fees for Escudero and Llorente.
• Too old. By comparison, Fabio Cannavaro and Carles Puyol each were 32 when they hoisted the World Cup. I’ll grant that Marchena may not be a starter in two years, but the club has some experience in navigating that situation (see: Javi Venta).
• Longtime Valencia captain. Los Che is our biggest rival, so weakening them is a good plan. And Marchena started his career with Sevilla, so we may have beaten them to another transfer target.

Pros:

• World Cup champion. It can’t hurt to have another one around. At the very least, Marchena will be a great role model for Musacchio, Catalá, and Kiko.
• Knows La Liga. Top-flight football is as much about physical ability as knowing your opposition. And it would be nice to get a few veteran calls in our favor.
• Starter at Euro 2008. Just as Senna, Cazorla, and Diego López were phased out of the Spanish squad by Vicente del Bosque, Marchena started alongside Puyol in 2008 but was replaced by Piqué by 2010. I like that a number of our Spanish players will have a chip on their shoulder coming into the season.

What a display on Thursday at White Hart Lane. U.K. down, Poland to go on the club’s European preseason swing. But as George W. Bush reminded us, don’t forget about them.

Lechia Gdansk has an interesting history, having been associated with Solidarity and counting Nobel Peace Prize winner Lech Walesa among its supporters. The club will get a new 44,000-seat ground in preparation for Euro 2012. I am unfamiliar with their players, but expect a grand environment for today’s match.

The game will be aired on Punt Dos in Castellón at 2 pm Eastern Time. I will miss the match, so please leave your comments and reactions in this thread. Endavant Villarreal!

UPDATE: A great result for Villarreal, as they went into north London and stole the show from Champions League-bound Tottenham with a 1-4 victory. Giuseppe Rossi stole the show for the Yellow Submarine with three goals, but as you can see in the comments, the likes of Borja Valero, Jefferson Montero, and Marco Ruben in the second half really gave us something to get excited about.

As Harry Redknapp said after the match, “They’re a great side, I was very impressed with them. We had a good squad out, but they were sharp. They were different class.”

Here are your highlights for those of you like me who did not get to see the match:

______
After two successful friendlies against Irish opposition, Villarreal faces its first real test of the preseason on Thursday evening at White Hart Lane. With the Europa League playoff on the horizon, it’s time for new signing Borja Valero to strut his stuff, among others.

Tottenham Hotspur has qualified for the Champions League for the first time since 1962. Congratulations. And the club just returned from two matches in New York City against New York Red Bulls (win) and Sporting Lisbon (draw). If the EPL weren’t so overrun by money, then Tottenham’s success might have been a bigger story. Similar to a smaller Spanish club that we all know and love?

Tottenham has some nice players, including the Croatian trio of Vedran Corluka, Nico Kranjcar, and Luka Modric, along with previously rumored Villarreal targets Adel Taarabt and Roman Pavlyuchenko. And shockingly for an EPL team, they have some talented young Brits: Tom Huddlestone, Jermaine Jenas, and Aaron Lennon. Should be a fun match, though both clubs have an eye on European competition.

Those of you able to watch at 3 pm Eastern Time (airing live in Spain on GolTV), please leave your comments and reactions in the thread. Hope to hear a lot about Montero.

I will throw a hat tip to Kenez, although I did stumble upon this before seeing his comment!

I love the “old people” comment.

We’re a big club now. The team is touring Ireland (Athlone Town, Bray Wanderers), England (Tottenham Hotspur), and Poland (Lechia Gdansk) for 4 preseason matches and countless questions about world champion Joan Capdevila.

Juan Carlos Garrido’s first 25-man squad of the 2010-11 season:

GKs (3): Diego López, Oliva, and Juan Carlos.
Ds (7): Ángel, Gonzalo, Musacchio, Kiko, Catalá, Mario, and Joan Oriol.
MFs (11): Senna, Bruno, Cani, Cazorla, Borja Valero, Cristóbal, Natxo Insa, Matilla, Marcos Gullón, Hernán Pérez, and Castellani.
Fs (4): Fuster, Rossi, Marco Ruben, and Jefferson Montero.

For the sake of discussion, assume no further transfers. How does this squad compare to the one at the Anoeta in late August? What is your first-choice starting XI?

GKs, 2-3: By promoting Juan Carlos (and 8 of his closest friends), there are 3 keepers in the squad. I think Juan Carlos is ready if a big offer comes in for Diego López, but that appears unlikely. Something has to give, as a 23 year-old third-choice keeper makes no sense. Xavi Oliva on loan to our promoted local friends Hercules or Levante?

Ds, 8: Capdevila and Godín will return from their holidays, sending Kiko back down. If the charrúa leaves, Marchena or another experienced defender will complement Gonzalo and the young pups. Musacchio and Catalá will get their chances; while Joan Oriol has it tough, Mario Gaspar should fill in when the bad Ángel rears its ugly head.

MFs, 8-9: Natxo Insa, Hernán Pérez, Castellani, and Marcos Gullón are filial players, though Gullón has earned a look. Fuster will move back to the midfield with Nilmar’s return, but there may still be an opening. I would love Achille Emana from Betis, but that might be too costly. We have 4 central (Borja Valero, Bruno, Matilla, Senna) and 4 wide players (Cani, Cazorla, Cristóbal, Fuster), but an Escudero-type could be useful if Cristóbal does not pan out. A knock to Santi and Montero moves back to winger?

Fs, 4: Even the biggest Jozy supporter does not expect him at the club this season. With Nilmar in the fold, it will be interesting to see how Garrido handles this quartet. We will miss Llorente’s physical presence, so does the 4-3-3 return? Rossi and Nilmar out wide with either B teamer in the middle would be lethal.