Blistering league form has Aspas gunning for regular Spain spot
Home comforts have Iago Aspas on the cusp of being a regular Spain international, as this La Liga campaign has seen the 29-year-old bounce back from disappointing jaunts away from Balaidos in recent years.
Three seasons spent with Liverpool and Sevilla cumulatively stunted his progress, but since returning to Celta Vigo in 2015, the Spaniard boasts a record that is close to a goal every other game. Aspas may have been best remembered on Merseyside for an awful corner delivery, rather than his striking prowess, but his performances this season have been no laughing matter.
At his age, Aspas may have believed that the national team boat had already set sail for him, but a purple patch at the start of this season has coincided nicely with new La Roja boss Julen Lopetegui looking to discount the past approach of Vicente del Bosque and pick his players based on form.
“You have to be very respectful towards the players that defined an era with the national team… but there are others as well,” Lopetegui told AS. “I insist that the first criteria to get into the squad is performance, ahead of any respect for the careers of those players.”
When Diego Costa pulled out of Spain’s squad with an injury in early November, Lopetegui stayed true to his word, and Aspas saw himself called up in the Chelsea forward’s absence. At that stage of the campaign, the Celta man had scored six league goals, but has since kicked on further to net nine in 13 appearances.
Such a return for the experienced striker has him sat as the top Spanish goalscorer in La Liga, and he sits just two goals and three assists off equalling Diego Costa’s excellent start to his Premier League season - which in turn makes him the second-most deadly Spaniard across Europe’s top divisions. Not bad for a player who was roundly mocked after two years in England.
Aspas can act as inspiration for his compatriots to impress domestically to make their way into La Roja's plans, with competition set to be fierce as their national pool gradually realise that Lopetegui’s words, when he was appointed as Spain boss, were not just waffle.
“The door to the national team has not closed for me, on the contrary, it has opened up for everyone,” former Real Madrid goalkeeper Diego Lopez told Cadena Ser. “Everyone can join the national team, regardless of who you are. You have to earn your place on merit to go, it doesn’t matter which team you play for, what your name is or how old you are. This is important for Spanish football.”
Aspas is the poster boy, with his debut against England at Wembley definitely an evening to stick in the mind of many. After being introduced into the fray at the half-time break, the debutant went on to rattle home one of Spain’s second-half strikes to aid a two-goal comeback for La Roja.
His sharp league form translated into a clinical first shot on goal on the international stage, as the Celta Vigo striker cut infield from the right-hand side, before curling a beautiful finish into the top-left corner that kissed the woodwork on its way into the back of the net, leaving Tom Heaton as a spectator.
Since then, Aspas has scored against Standard Liege, Granada and Real Betis. His two goals against the latter this weekend continued to show that the diminutive forward keeps getting in the right places at the right time to fuel his excellent form.
The first was a real poacher’s effort just before the 15-minute mark, as the Spaniard ghosted in to meet a cross from the right and poke home a point-blank finish. Later, once it had appeared that Celta had managed to let the game get away from them, up popped Aspas to guide home a cut-back from the opposite flank to make it 2-2, following great work from Theo Bongonda.
A fantastic chip against Las Palmas displayed a more technical side to his finishing, with a composed shot across goal enough to beat Marc-Andre ter Stegen when Aspas helped to inspire Celta to an unlikely result against reigning champions Barcelona. The chances are coming any which way, and Aspas is in the type of form where he isn’t even needing to think when he takes them.
The 29-year-old likes to be direct and to run at players, but his 1.8 key passes per league match highlight that he has some cutting edge in the final third too. Managing an average of 1.2 dribbles and winning 2.1 free-kicks per La Liga outing, it is tough to stop Aspas when he is in the mood and wants to take the game to the opposition, as Las Palmas found out in October.
While in the past, Aspas may have been seen as a stop-gap, or just a fleeting replacement for Diego Costa, under Lopetegui the striker has his foot wedged in the door. With Alvaro Morata only just returning from injury and Aritz Aduriz failing to impress for the national team, Celta Vigo might just stand to gain further from a man motivated to try and make a major tournament for his country before his retirement.
