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Center-back - Raul Albiol (Villarreal)
Raul Albiol emerged through Valencia's youth system as a promising centre-back. He made his debut at Getafe CF while on loan from Valencia, but returned to his home club the following season to take his place in the first team.
A versatile defender with technical ability and a distinct aerial prowess, Albiol could also play at right-back or in defensive midfield but was primarily used as a centre-back by Valencia before his move to Spanish giants Real Madrid in 2009.
Albiol spent a large part of his time at Real Madrid playing second fiddle to Pepe and Sergio Ramos. A move to Italy saw Albiol come into his own, as he flourished under Maurizio Sarri's tutelage at Napoli. Post Sarri's departure, Albiol secured a move to Villarreal in 2019.
Albiol also has 56 caps for his national team Spain. The presence of Carles Puyol, Gerard Pique, and Sergio Ramos confined Albiol to the bench for a large part of his international career, but he has always proved to be a solid choice at the heart of the defence.
Center-back - Jeremy Mathieu (Sporting Lisbon)
Taking up the other centre-back slot is French defender Jeremy Mathieu, who joined Valencia from Ligue 1 club, Toulouse, in 2009. Mathieu was then manager Unai Emery's first signing at the helm of Valencia and was brought in primarily to play as a left-back.
While Mathieu did spend a large part of his time at Valencia on the left flank, his defensive awareness and ability on the ball made it clear to the keen eye that he had the skills required to play in the centre of defence. He was used on occasion by Emery as a makeshift central defender and went on to make the position his own.
His technical ability and aerial prowess caught the eye of FC Barcelona, who signed him in 2014 to add steel to an already established pairing of Gerard Pique and Javier Mascherano. Mathieu did very well for himself in his first season at Barcelona, winning the treble with the Catalans.
Mathieu left Barcelona in 2017 in search of more playing time and joined Sporting Lisbon on a free transfer.
Left-Back - Jordi Alba
Clinching the left-back spot is Jordi Alba, nicknamed El Ferrari, and for good reason.
The Spanish left-back rose through the ranks a Barcelona's La Masia youth academy as a winger and moved to Valencia to complete his footballing education. He made his debut for Los Che in the 2009-10 season, at 20 years of age.
Exemplary and consistent performances in the Valencia shirt saw Jordi Alba picked as the first-choice left-back for Spain's Euro 2012 campaign. The competition proved to be a turning point in Alba's career.
The left-back was unplayable through the competition, using his electric pace to devastating effect. He scored a famous goal on the counter in the final against Italy, outrunning every other outfield player on the pitch to latch on to Xavi's pass and score Spain's second goal.
His performances for club and country in 2012 did not go unnoticed and Barcelona paid a bargain price of €14 million to secure his services. Alba has since gone on to etch himself into Catalan football history, winning the treble with Barcelona in the 2014-15 season, in addition to forming a telepathic relationship with the club's talisman, Lionel Messi.
Right-back - Joao Cancelo
Adding to the list of speedy full-backs who have played for Valencia is Joao Cancelo, a Portuguese right-back who came through Benfica's youth academy and joined Valencia on loan in 2014.
Cancelo spent a large part of the season as a second choice full-back behind Antonio Barragan but impressed whenever he was given the chance. Valencia made the move permanent in 2015, and Cancelo hasn't looked back ever since.
Impressive performances in Spain caught the eye of Italian champions Juventus, who signed him in 2018.
In 2019, Pep Guardiola signed the Portuguese right-back for Manchester City from Juventus in exchange for Danilo, in a deal worth £60 million, making Cancelo the most valuable right-back in history.
