Gavi, Pino and 10 Spain players to explode in the last six months

Martin Macdonald

• 11 Mar 2022 11:10 GMT
• 2 min read

Gavi is the most improved Spanish player over the last six months, according to SciSports.

Using in-game data to calculate the performance of every player eligible to play for Spain, the Barcelona midfielder has enjoyed the greatest improvement, statistically.

Gavi has burst onto the scene in the 2021/22 campaign and is already a key member of the first team squad at Camp Nou despite being just 17-years-old.

He has already been called up to the senior Spanish national team, too.

Gavi has started an impressive 19 La Liga matches so far this campaign, and it is this exposure to first-team football at a very high level that has seen his SciSkill level skyrocket over the last six months.

In second is another Barcelona wonderkid in Nico, who like Gavi, has been given plenty of game time this season, particularly under Xavi.

He has been a substitute more games than he has started in La Liga, but at just 20, the game time has been vital in his development.

In third is one of the hottest properties in Spanish football, Yeremy Pino. The young winger has been superb for Villarreal over the last 18 months and is reportedly attracting the interest of Real Madrid, Liverpool and Arsenal.

He would cost a reported €80 million, and that is reflected in his boost in SciSkill.

The first Real Madrid player on our list is Rafa Marin. He currently plays with Castilla, but could be set for a move abroad with RB Leipzig potentially looking at a summer deal.

One of the most impressive centre-backs this season in Spain has been Victor Chust, and he is fifth on our list.

The top 10 is rounded out by Jaume Cuellar (Lugo), Oriol Soldevila (Birmingham), Manu Sanchez (Osasuna), Raul Torrente (Recreativo), and Sergio Gomez (Anderlecht).

How is the SciSkill ranking calculated?

Over the course of a season, there are players who will enjoy increasingly poor performances and increasingly positive performances.

FootballTransfers, in partnership with SciSports, has determined 10 Spanish players over the last six months whose performances have improved to a higher degree than anyone else.

SciSports explains how our development ratings are gathered:

“Among others, a positive development could be boosted by more playing time, playing time on a higher level or better performances on the pitch.

“A negative development could be due to the player being active on a lower level than he used to play, bad performances or the fact that he does not play that often as he used to do.

“A SciSkill Development of 0.0 could indicate that a player is performing exactly like our algorithm expects him to do. Another reason could be inactivity (e.g. a long-term injury or suspension).”

It should be noted that vast improvement does not necessarily mean that a player was underperforming previously.