"Barcelona is a meritocracy and players must prove that they deserve to play," says "Maldini"

Spanish Football / Julio Maldonado / 13 November 2008 / Leave a Comment

Julio Maldonado, the man they call "Maldini", is back with his thoughts on the hot topics of Spanish football including Xavi's form, the race between Higuain and Eto'o to be "pichichi" and the secret to Sevilla's success.

One of the characteristics of Guardiola's Barcelona regime is a great emphasis on rules, discipline and heavy fines for breaking them. What can you tell us about this and has it worked so far?

It is true and it really is working. What's important is that Guardiola is projecting the image that he is capable of managing the team. He is a legend at Barcelona and that earned him respect from day one. Another smart thing he has done is letting everyone know that no-one has a guaranteed spot in the starting eleven. By handing a midfield role to the likes of Sergio Busquets, who was promoted from the youth team this year, he sent a clear message: Barcelona is a meritocracy and players must prove that they deserve to play. It is working wonders for their game.

Speaking of Barcelona, Xavi is in the form of his life, scoring plenty of goals and being described as the best central midfielder in the world at the moment. How has this come about?

Xavi was named Player of the Tournament for EURO 2008, and his contribution and importance at Barcelona has increased when he started playing with greater freedom closer to the box. That's where he becomes a bigger threat. He is playing in the right team, because he needs to be in a team which maintains a high ball possession, and hardly anyone can beat Barcelona at that game. His partnership with Iniesta is producing amazing football.

A rather more unsung hero is Marcos Senna at Villarreal. How well has he played so far and will Villarreal manage to hold on to him into next season?

Senna has been crucial to Villareal since he arrived from Sao Caetano, except for one season when he was plagued by injuries. He balances the team from the centre of the pitch, has terrific shooting skills and always delivers. Playing for Spain at the EURO he proved he can also play the holding midfield role on his own, something he never had to do at Villareal.

In last month's edition you tipped up a third-place finish for Sevilla. They're currently fifth and just five points off the lead despite selling one of their most influential players in Daniel Alves. What's their secret?

The last few years they have shown an amazing eye for signings, and they only sell key players after finding suitable replacements. More importantly, they have tried new players in roles they weren't used to and made them perform even better. Baptista was a midfielder at Sao Paulo (he had only played up front for the youth club Taca Sao Paulo de Juniores).

Sevilla moved him forward where he became a lethal striker. Adriano is another example, he had always played on the left but in Sevilla he has performed at a very high level on the right wing.

Higuain is in fine goalscoring form at Real Madrid but that man Eto'o is still the man to beat according to the Betfair market at around 1.7. Are we backing or laying the Cameroon international?

Higuain has been scoring a lot lately, but Eto'o has a stronger team behind him, which makes me believe he will be la Liga's top scorer. If he doesn't get injured, I think he is the man.

One of your fans has e-mailed in wanting to know your thoughts on the Serie A winner market. It's all pretty close at the top - where would your money be?

I think Inter has a stronger squad than Milan, who have reached the top of the table without playing quality football. Inter aren't playing too well either though, and they've had their share of defensive problems, for example when they played Anorthosis. But they are leading the Calcio nonetheless. They have a deeper bench, a more balanced squad and Ibrahimovic who is unstoppable...