Valerón

Full name is: Juan Carlos Valerón Santana

A playmaker sometimes compared to Zinedine Zidane he began his career at Las Palmas his local team. After one season in the second team he played his way into the first string where his performances led to a move to play for Real Mallorca for whom he signed in 1997. Atletico Madrid snapped him up in the summer of 1998 and his performances on a bigger stage led to an international debut in November 1998 against Italy. He made the 2000 European Championship Finals but did not perform well. This did not stop Deportivo La Coruna signing him after the tournament ended and his excellent performances for them, especially in the European Champions League against Manchester United, have put him back into contention for a place in the World Cup Finals.

He started in the central midfield position made available by the injury to Josep Guardiola, and made the most of his opportunity by scoring his first international goal in the 3-1 against Slovenia in their opening game in the Far East.