The Spanish Revolución – How La Liga is becoming the most exciting thing in world football today

Croatian hitman Mario Mandzukic was brought in to ‘attempt to’ replace Diego Costa

Atléti may have lost the services of their talisman and primary hitman Diego Costa, their energetic left back Filipe Luis and the enigmatic Chelsea loanee Thibaut Courtois, but they used that money wisely to get in the quicksilver Frenchman Antoine Griezmann and expert marksman Mario Mandzukic along with other exciting talent.

Sevilla, champions of Europe -well the Europa League anyway- did lose their playmaking hub Rakitic to Barca (getting in return two exciting loanees in Gerard Deulofeu and Denis Suarez) but were able to retain the spine of their unit and add to their midfield strength with the mercurial Ever Banega and the defensive rock that is Grzegorz Krychowiak.

Valencia were the big winners of the window – a team used to seeing superstar after superstar leave ever since their historic triumph in ’04 were not only able to retain their most exciting talents but also strengthen the side considerably through the smart acquisitions - Shkordan Mustafi, Nicolas Otamendi, Andre Gomes and Rodrigo Moreno chief amongst them. Their most important buy though may well turn out to be journeyman goalkeeper turned manager Nuno Espirito Santo.

Malaga lost the excellent Willy Caballero (who is now warming the benches in the cold of Manchester) but have more than capably replaced the Argentine with Mexican World Cup sensation Guillermo Ochoa (plus they still have the indomitable Carlos Kameni wearing no.1) and have also strengthened their leaky defence considerably.

At tiny Celta Vigo, Eduardo Berizzo replaced Luis Enrique and did a decent job strengthening the squad with the attack minded additions of creative midfielder Pablo Hernandez and the Batigol look-alike (and wannabe Batigol goal machine like) Joaquin Larrivey.

Sure, all these transfer dealings were very nice and all that – but surely this was going to be a straight shoot-out between the ridiculous battery of attacks that are Real and Barca. Ronaldo vs. Messi. Bale vs. Neymar. Rodriguez vs. Suarez. That’s what would decide the fate of the league title. The rest, as ever were sparring partners, poor sods who would be knocked clean off their feet as the big guns prepared for the main event (s) –El Clasico(s)

Well, it hasn’t really turned out to be that easy for the big boys this time around. Ever since El Chulo’s underdogs knocked them off their perch on that fateful March day, there has been revolution brewing in the air, and if the opening rounds of the season are any indication – we are in for one helluva ride.

The start of the Spanish Revolution?

Atléti, quite naturally the leaders of this charge of the ‘Others’ – defending champions, still rabidly intense, still intent on building on the brilliant work of last season, may have started off poorly (among those faintly disappointing opening games – a 3-1 bollocking at fellow contenders Valencia) but have recently hit something akin to top-gear (their last game, a surprisingly comprehensive defeat at Real Sociedad apart).

Valencia, however are the surprise package of the season – having finished a lowly 8th last time out (missing out in Europe for the first time in ages in the process), Nuno now has them playing a thrillingly direct brand of football based on constant pressing and lightning quick counter attacks – none of that meandering about passing ‘nonsense’ that the Spanish game is so famous for.

This rather rare style has worked magnificently (a 3-0 thrashing at the hands of another old superpower, Deportivo La Coruna, aside) and has seen them reach third place, just a point behind Barca and three behind league leaders Real. And they don’t seem like they are leaving these top echelons anytime soon.

The great Andalusian club Sevilla is just a point behind (level with Atléti) and has earned their right to be there with some absolutely mesmerizing displays of possession based football.

Unai Emery, the former Valencia coach who lead Los Che to three consecutive third place finishes, is in his third year in charge and has adapted wonderfully well to the departure of his lynchpin Rakitic by moulding his team around a midfield composed of the powerful Stephen M’bia (who is having the season of his life till now), the mercurial Ever Banega and the two Barca loanees along with the attacking threat of the powerful Colombian Carlos Bacca .

He has maintained the momentum that propelled them to the Europa League trophy last season, and has got them playing some breathtaking football.

If only Emery can get over his apparent stage fright – and perform against the big guns (Valencia finished at least twenty points adrift in all three of their third place finishes) as well as he gets Sevilla to do against the rest, they should be in with a shout come March 2015.

Their fellow Andalusians Malaga find themselves pretty well situated at sixth (just two points behind the team from Seville), having recovered somewhat from the financial troubles they encountered since the Qatari, Sheikh Abdullah Al Thani, took over. Javi Garcia has moulded a decent outfit with Duda, Samuel Casillejo and Camacho providing the solid base on which the disciplined side have done so well this season.

When Luis Enrique left to coach Barcelona, few Celta fans would have imagined, even in their wildest dreams, that his successor would lead the Galician outfit to victory at the Nou Camp – Berizzo having crafted a tidy, well-drilled unit that defends well and attacks quickly. Powered by the magic of Nolito and Johnny Castro alongside the finishing prowess of Larrivey, they find themselves just a point off Malaga in seventh.

Having said all that, It’s not like Real or Barca have suddenly forgotten how to play the game – Carlo Ancelotti’s men have been playing some supremely sublime football (Cristiano Ronaldo has scored a frankly ludicrous 18 goals in 11 league matches) and lead the table with 27 points, while Barcelona have dominated most of the matches they have played in – just not how they used to. They are still only two points behind their arch enemies.

However, Real, despite their plethora of attacking talents, do look vulnerable at the back, as Real Sociedad so unbelievably showed in their 4-2 demolition of the European champions at San Sebastien (Sociedad are like the anti–Sevilla, seemingly capable of playing their best football only when faced with materially superior opponents. David Moyes will have his hands full with the Basques this season).

And Barca, for all their domination, seem to lacking a killer edge, their famed ruthlessness in front of goal seemingly abandoning even the best of them (read Lionel Messi). With Suarez still adapting to life in Catalunya, they may take a while to hit top gear.

All this means that the conditions are perfect for a revolution to succeed. A revolution, whose embers were fanned by the ultimate ‘Other’ club Atlético, now appears poised to flare up into an unbridled conflagration. The league leaders are only seven points in front of the team in seventh, as it stands today.

With Chelsea dominating England (we all love what Southampton are upto on the south coast, but realistically – come on!), Bayern Munich ruling over the Bundesliga with an iron fist and Juventus & Roma pulling away from the rest in Italy, this Spanish Revolución may just have made La Liga the most exciting thing in World football.